


Tripped and Fell in Love

by pepgold



Category: The Adventure Zone (Podcast)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern with Magic, Blow Jobs, Childhood Friends, Dogs, Fluff, Found Family, Hand Jobs, Lingerie, M/M, Meet the Family, Mutual Pining, POV Alternating, Sexting, Sharing Clothes, Shower Sex, Siblings, Texting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-04
Updated: 2018-03-09
Packaged: 2019-03-13 19:50:38
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 40
Words: 70,109
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13577769
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pepgold/pseuds/pepgold
Summary: They hadn’t spoken in years. And Kravitz had kind of wanted to for a while. Pretty much forever. But it was too late at this point, right?Even with Barry being Kravitz’s best friend, and Barry dating Taako’s sister for over a decade… they just didn’t hang out together. Not like they had in high school.It wasn’t a Thing.





	1. An End has a Start

At the ripe old age of 28, Kravitz was beginning to wonder if things were just going to suck from here on out. This was not where he’d thought he’d be, months before his ten-year high school reunion.

  
Kravitz locked up and walked to his car, pausing and leaning back against the headrest to just breathe for a minute before turning the key. The store in front of him, dark and empty, was slowly crushing him.

  
It paid the bills, and it _technically_ fell under the umbrella of his degree… but working at the local Music Store and selling guitars was not a challenge or a thrill. His coworkers were mostly high school kids. It was not where he Wanted To Be.

  
He looked forward to Thursdays, where he got to take off early to meet and rehearse with the community orchestra. Their city didn’t put a lot of stock into it, so none of them could make that a full-time thing. Honestly, most of the other folks who showed up had more in Enthusiasm than they had in Talent. But it was fun, and he got to conduct like he wanted to.

  
It was a hobby, again, but maybe it could be a real, proper career one day. Kravitz yearned to make it one, or at least find something more fulfilling than… treading water, or whatever this was. 

  
The last time he’d really thought _this might work_ in relation to _conduct the damn thing_ had been when his mother was single-handedly funding it all. She was arguably one of the most influential people in the city, and it had been a great year for music. Or, really, for him. He’d worked really hard to try and make it work, to get the seats filled in the big theater. He’d put out the compositions he’d been proudest of, and the songs had been played with reasonable competence…

  
But one influential drow does not make a thriving classical music scene, and Kravitz had felt really bad about waste as soon as he realized they weren’t making nearly the profits needed to sustain themselves. She didn’t mind, she loved him, but he knew it wasn’t working. Without marketing, without a pull for young people or a way to reliably reach out to old people ( _maybe the newspaper?_ ), it wasn’t going to get better fast enough.

  
He could find a way to succeed in classical music without forcing his mother to pave the way for him with her cash and influence. He just needed to regroup. Write new works (assuming that his compositions _weren’t_ the problem-- if they were, he had bigger problems), figure out how to run a business, maybe hire someone for marketing? It might work the next time.

  
Or, at least, that was his plan. It wasn’t exactly working, so far.

  
His apartment was modest, just barely respectable. Now that he was a few years beyond college, and then the experiment with full-time conducting, Kravitz was increasingly loathe to let his mother pay for things. She probably would, if he asked, but he was a grown-ass half-elf, and maybe a still little proud. (Even if he wasn’t sure what he was proud of, at this point.)

  
Back then, it’d been more than a blessing to have a luxurious home to come back to on holidays, to have a generous allowance for stuff he probably didn’t need, so he could eat out and dress well, and so on… now he was a little older and, okay, slightly more likely to eat ramen for dinner. He appreciated that he still fit into the nicer clothes, even if he spent a lot more time in rough uniform polos than wearing suit jackets.  
  
  
Kravitz checked on the various phone games he was unfortunately sucked into, flopping into an armchair after setting his things down on the counter. Collected stamina in one game, did a free gacha pull on another, and compulsively opened up Fantasy Twitter to see what his favorite celebrities were schlocking that night (he didn’t have friends on the platform, and also didn’t tweet anything). Satisfied that he’d been entirely spoiled on every show he’d missed on TV that night, he thumbed over to Fantasy Facebook to see the usual: Sloane and Hurley looking cute in a selfie, his mom posting her nicely plated dinner (his stomach growled), Magnus sharing a dog anecdote just vague enough that Kravitz didn’t know which dog it was about, Barry sharing some article from a pop culture site...

  
Nothing abnormal, until a name he hadn’t been letting himself think about popped up in the comments under Barry’s post.

  
Taako.

   
Now… he hadn’t forgotten Taako. You couldn’t forget someone like him. But they weren’t friends on Facebook, and Taako didn’t comment very often on posts that Kravitz was privy to. Kravitz didn’t usually comment on much either, so he didn’t think anything was weird about that, but...

   
But they hadn’t spoken in years. And Kravitz had kind of wanted to for a while. Pretty much forever. But it was too late at this point, right?

   
Even with Barry being Kravitz’s best friend, and Barry dating Taako’s sister for over a decade (they’d actually been married for a few years, now)… they just didn’t hang out together. Not like they had in high school (and even then, was it really _hanging out_ if ten or more people were talking over each other in the cafeteria?)

   
It wasn’t a Thing.

   
But Kravitz was very aware that he’d… probably had a lot of chances to make it a Thing. Half of his compositions were regrets about how he hadn’t made his crush on Taako a Thing. They’d been called _mournful and beautiful_ by the critics that’d showed up in that one year.

   
He went to read what the comment actually said, realizing he’d been sitting there long enough for his phone screen to turn off.

   
Taako was just teasing Barry: _aww barold you do care!!_

   
Kravitz clicked Barry’s link, because he was curious, and was immediately greeted by a winking, dolled up Taako in the header image. He… he looked good. Beautiful. Kravitz swallowed thickly, reading through the article.

   
_Sizzle It Up With Taako! Fantasy Youtube’s Freshest New Food Channel_. The author of this article was singing the praises of this elf that Kravitz had known since the second grade. Stuff about genius flavor combinations and winning personality. Was Taako like… internet famous? When had that happened?

   
Then again, the article hadn’t implied that this was like… the newest, most viral, video meme of the week. Just a cute up-and-comer that apparently warranted an article? Why did this feel weird?

   
He just hadn’t realized Taako had this side thing going. Kravitz knew about Taako’s bakery, and that that was doing well… according to their mutual friends. He hadn’t worked up the nerve to walk in and buy anything. He suspected that neither his nerves, nor his wallet, could take it. And it was always full of people. Their mutual friends probably knew Kravitz still harbored something of a flame for the elf.

   
Maybe it was time.

   
Or, well, okay, not time for _everything_. Like he could solve all of this problems at once, but this problem was one he needed to get over.

   
Worst case scenario, they’d just be normal friends again… or actually, worst case would probably be if Taako just didn’t respond to his request at all.

   
Under the Friends tab, on the first suggested friend slot, was the elf himself.

   
The one, the only, _Taako with 17 mutual friends_. Kravitz clicked Add Friend and exited the app. It was done. This was a mistake, but it was out in the ether, now. Nothing to be done about it. He was pretty sure that even if he went back and tried to undo it, Taako would get a notification anyway.

   
He stewed in silence for a few minutes before steeling himself. _While torturing yourself emotionally_ , Kravitz figured, _it probably can’t get worse_ . He went to heat up a hot pocket for dinner and pulled up Fantasy Youtube on the TV. He got as far as typing _Siz_ on the remote before the app was suggesting _Sizzle it Up!_ and he let the first video play as he worked his way through the still-frozen center of his pastry.

   
Taako had looked good on the still header image on the article. But he was radiant in motion. Kravitz hadn’t realized how much he’d missed hearing Taako’s sing-song voice every day until now, and now that voice was telling him how to gut a fish. He smiled.

 

Maybe he would be able to tap into some old joke and they could start talking again. It didn’t have to be weird. He’d managed to keep his crush under wraps all through eighth grade, and then high school. Kravitz was way more mature now, and could probably handle just being friends again, if Taako wasn’t too famous to hang out with him.

   
He watched another video before forcing himself to stop. There were only twelve tutorials and two vlogs up on the channel, he didn’t want to run through them all in one night.

   
Kravitz checked his phone another three times, restless, before giving up on talking to anybody that night, showering, and crawling into bed.

 

* * *

 

He woke up to his alarm the next morning, and also to a new message, terrifying and exciting:

  
00:47  
Taako: _heyyyyyy krav you dating anyone? when did you get so handsome??? wtf_

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm so nervous about posting this y'all. i haven't posted a fic since MY high school times which were uhh a little while ago.
> 
> anyway i've been lurking and reading stuff in this good good fandom since i caught up last summer, and um. let me know what you think! i'm dead. i love these boys but writing them so dumb is so fun.
> 
> oh ALSO: the rating will change eventually, and i'm going to add tags as i go.
> 
> update: also also:  
> title is from Tripped and Fell in Love by YACHT which was very good as a basis for some of these ideas in the fic.  
> all of the chapter titles are also songs, and they're gonna make the weirdest unintentional playlist, whoops


	2. Mistaken for Strangers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> taako time

Taako had given himself a nice, simple schedule, today. He was doing an exercise in letting his actually-competent staff handle the front counter and incoming orders. It was a true luxury to get to actually just BAKE in his own goddamn bakery, and it was also the true reason that he’d hired help at all. Ren and Joaquin were godsends and probably ranking somewhere in the top twenty on favorite people ever (that list included a few celebrities).

   
And for their sacrifices, he got to make sugar flowers and pour batter. It was good.

   
Ren came around back to write something on the calendar, and then to have a look at what he was working on. She watched him quietly for a minute before piping up, “Saw your latest video, boss. I was just thinkin, how it’s kinda funny how different you dress when you’re bakin’ for work.”

   
Taako snorted and continued to mold little petals, “Don’t gotta look pretty if I’m in the back room. ‘Sides, everyone here in town knows what I looked like before I figured out eyeliner.”

   
“Well, I didn’t know you back then!” she grinned, “But I’m not someone you’ve gotta impress, makes sense.”

   
“Yeah, and Joaquin saw me soaked with water last week when the dishwasher wouldn’t cooperate. Y’all are getting that Raw Taako, unfiltered.” He paused to let her giggle before continuing, “What’s up, besides my being a literal mess?”

   
“Hmm, well.” Ren hedged, “I guess I’ve just noticed maybe a few more customers coming from out of town, lately. They’re comin’ more for you than the food, y’know? They ain’t mad or nothing, but I figured I probably shouldn’t call you up front to meet ‘em if you aren’t…”

   
“On brand?” Taako set the stick he’d been forming the flower on down into a holder, dozens of little flowers already stood up in it, “Hmm. Maybe I should set up meet ‘n greet days or something. Like hell am I gonna go back to working the front all day, that’s what I pay you for.”

   
Ren gave him another little smile, “Think about it. I mean, either way, the videos are good for business. The regulars like ‘em too.”

   
He nodded and the drow went back to the front, taking a tray of fresh cookies with her.

   
Taako liked getting his hands dirty, to make food or art (or both) so much more than ringing up stuff or doing paperwork. It was therapeutic and satisfying in a way that few other things in his life were. Lup was always bemoaning the way that he kept making more trouble for himself, but that’s how Taako do.

   
She was also a big fan of nagging him for skipping meals, but that wasn’t likely to change anytime soon either. He just kept working, either at the bakery or at home, and time slipped by. It wasn’t like he meant to do it. And besides, when you worked with food for a living, it was maybe kinda hard to motivate himself work with food for fun when he got home after a long day. At least when he did a video he got to eat the whatever it was. He’d had a dozen macarons for dinner a few nights back. Anyway, Lup also had a boyfriend to remind her to eat, so comparing their habits wasn’t fair.

   
He headed home after work, immediately kicking off his shoes and popping open a bottle of wine. Maybe a shower was actually more pertinent, but Taako had several different social media feeds he needed to be in tune with, for The Brand, and he hadn’t checked on stuff during the day, today. He’d had time at lunch (a pastry shoved in his mouth plus a then-cold coffee Joaquin had brought him that morning) to comment on Barry’s helpful plug, and then not touched his phone until now. Late O’Clock. His notifications were a lot of the usual, but then one not-so-usual thing caught his eye.

   
 _Kravitz Macallister sent you a Friend Request_

   
Taako stared at this for what felt like several minutes before diving into Fantasy Facebook, ears flicked up in total attention. He totally ignored the Add Friend button in favor of checking out Kravitz’s page. Suddenly, his energy was back, it was almost like he’d worked a short shift instead of staying past sundown. He hadn’t thought about Kravitz in like… at least a week. He was busy, but not so busy that he couldn’t daydream a little. He missed the guy, but would never admit that. It’d been years since they talked last...

   
He should really think about dinner, but that shit could wait. He had some research to do. What’s that boy been up to? Was he still cute? Was he still gay? These were important questions. A message from Lup popped up and he swiped it off the screen without reading it.

   
Kravitz didn’t have a whole hell of a lot on his page, turned out. Mostly stuff like photos he’d gotten tagged in with his mom or Sloane, or a meme that Lucas must’ve thought he’d like. (The photos, Kravitz has Liked or Loved, the memes, Taako noticed, have no reaction. Good man.) Taako pointedly did not hit Like on anything, because he was not a creep. He did download a couple of choice selfies and smiles, though, because actually he was a _little bit_ of a creep.

   
Every now and then, there’d be a video.

   
Taako watched one, settled with wine glass in one hand, precariously holding the phone directly over his face with the other.

   
It’s just a shot of the ceiling, Kravitz’s face briefly in view at the beginning as he starts the video and walks away. And then a keyboard would begin to play. Taako winced as it came through on his max-volume crappy phone speakers, turned it down enough to actually hear.

   
The song was really pretty.

   
It had a lot working against it: the bad camera angle, the part where it was recorded from a phone, and probably uploaded in low quality (now that Taako was in the Video Making market, he considered himself an expert on this stuff). He replayed this video anyway, eyes closed as he listened to Kravitz’s fingers dance across the keys, imagining what he thought that might look like. Kravitz always did have nice hands. They went along with the nice rest of him. He shook his head to try and clear that train of thought.

   
His old friend (maybe oldest, if you didn’t count Lup, or their adoptive dad Merle) had been only a memory lately. Taako was a little surprised, now, that he hadn’t thought to stalk the dude on social media before now, but then Taako had been a very busy Taako these last few years.

   
After culinary school and a few investors, he’d managed to open smash-hit successful bakery. He was really proud of the growth they’d managed in a few short years. It’d been pretty hectic, juggling it all himself until he hired his assistants last year. Of course, now he had customers asking every day if he could please, _please_ open another location on the other side of town.

   
It was crazy, and thrilling, and he loved it. He felt like he was doing what he was made to do.

   
The success was kind of isolating him from his family and friends, though. These days he saw Angus at the library more often than he ate with Magnus or Merle. He always made time for Lup and Barry, though.

   
More than anyone, Lup was obviously family, and that meant Barry was family by association. He was a nerd, but like, a good one. He’d dated Lup since the end of middle school, and looked at her like she’d hung the moon. Taako had been weirdly jealous back in high school, but more for the relationship than the boy. Barry was… fine, but not really his type at all. He was perfect for Lup, and honestly pretty perfect as a brother-in-law.

   
Barry, Taako knew, was Kravitz’s closest guy friend. Despite that closeness, there wasn’t a lot of crossing the friendship streams now that they were adults. Their various circles overlapped some, but clearly the Taako Sphere and the Kravitz Sphere were apparently not meant to touch. 

   
Back in high school, though, there’d been An Attempt to get Taako and Kravitz together. It was orchestrated by Taako’s meddling sister and her bluejeans boy, trying to set up a double date, but both boys had caught wind and put an end to that. Taako, for his part, had just known he was going to make an idiot of himself if he tried to flirt with a friend in _seriousness_. Like, flirting for fun was nothing, but flirting with intent, at a friend? In high school? Oh no, no way, so many ways that could and would break bad. So it hadn’t happened then.

   
He realized he was still watching piano videos, though, scrolling through and unmuting and patiently sitting through each one. And maybe he was having a feeling? An emotion?

   
 _Maybe_ , he thought, halfway through the bottle of chardonnay he’d been working through in lieu of food, it could happen _now?_

   
Before he could stop himself from doing something dumb -- and this was definitely dumb, Taako knew that -- he accepted the friend request and popped open the little send-a-message link. It was… past midnight now, _shit, dinner_ , so if he was lucky, Kravitz wouldn’t see this right away.

   
How many y’s did he need in his _heyyy_ before was making his intentions were clear?

   
Oh right, like six.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> more chapters later! maybe i'll figure out a posting schedule, but idk what that'll be yet. i've got more written and like 14+ chapters pre-planned, but i have no idea how long this thing'll be. at least 20 chapters?? anyway i hope i did ok so far
> 
> just wanted to try a few things. "modern" + "fantasy" + we swap which boy is successful in their lives lol + old friends etc etc
> 
> lemme know what you think and also i forgot to put my tumblr anywhere, and also idk how ao3 works, but i'm [pepgold](http://pepgold.tumblr.com) there too


	3. Sound of Silver

Lup spent an evening helping Taako get dolled up (tonight  he _'just wanted to look ethereally pretty'_??) for a new video, and then getting and portioning out ingredients according to his chicken-scratch notes while he fiddled with his lighting setup. The first few hours of Twin Time were often actually Taako Can’t Stop Working time, but she figured that if she helped him get a video done, he would sit still and they could eat whatever he cooked up.

  
This usually worked great! He’d get all of his nervous energy out, fussing with the camera and the lights, rearranging all of the little bowls of stuff, doing and redoing his hair until it was 70% product instead of 100% hair.

  
Tonight, as they tucked into the curry he’d made, he was still pretty antsy, ears twitching up and down by degrees.

  
She refilled his glass for him and cleared her throat, “So… Everything alright at the bakery? Ren’s letting you have bathroom breaks, right?”

  
Taako fidgeted and sipped at his wine. “Yeah, it’s fine,” he narrowed his eyes at her over the edge of his glass, “And I’m totally fine, so don’t get all up in my business.”

  
“Oooh, if you say you’re fine, that’s always a great indicator of just how fine you are, huh?” she lilted, trying to keep the mood light so he didn’t curl in on himself, “C’mon, how about yes or no’s, I know something’s up.”

  
He made a go-on gesture and took a couple of bigger gulps from his glass. _Had_ to be something, if he thought he needed more drink to get there.

  
“So, it’s not the bakery...”

  
“Nope.”

  
Lup tilted back in her chair thoughtfully, “Is it a boy?” The way Taako sputtered into his glass was pretty fucking incriminating, but she waited patiently (sweetly, even) so he’d have to actually answer.

  
“Y-yeah, I guess so.”

  
“Do I know him?” and then when he didn’t answer right away, “Is he cute?” Lup knew that her brother wasn’t gonna appreciate this phase of the conversation, where she forced him to talk about his issue, but later he’d be thanking her. For sure. Taako was always a mess when he was bottling stuff up, what little magic he had would start screwing up the materials in his clothes. Whereas she was a volcano when she didn’t have anyone willing to let her vent, literally, she’d catch fire. She had a few different strategic go-bags of spare clothes for when things popped off.

  
“That two questions, but uh, god, yes and yes. Please don’t be weird, it isn’t anything yet,” Taako leaked out in a whiny string, and then huffed, mumbling into his glass, “Be nice to me.”

  
Lup smiled at him indulgently, reaching over to pet his hairsprayed-to-hell hair, “Okay, bro. It’s been a hot minute since you were all flustered over a boy, I can be nice.” She waited for him to relax a little into her touch before pulling the rug out from under him, “Is it... Kravitz?”

  
“You said you’d be nice! You had five seconds of being nice. A world record for shortest time my sister was ever sweet.” He glared, “You’re the worst.”

  
“But is it him, though?”

  
Taako groaned loudly, “What do you want me to say? That you were right all along and I wanna jump his bones? That you never stopped being right and I’ve  _ aaalways _ wanted to climb him like a tree? Yes, Lup, good job, you solved my boy puzzle, god.”

  
“Dude, Facebook told me you added him, chill,” Lup topped off her glass, “But anyway, it’s about time. Y’all gonna go out or something, or are you a mess over just saying hi to the guy.”

  
“He hasn’t gotten back to me after I messaged him,” Taako sighed, “To be fair, I did kinda come onto him a little bit, and it was the first time I’d said anything to him in like… at least seven years, so I wouldn’t blame him for ignoring it.” Lup kindly didn't mention that they had both been present at her wedding. Maybe they were just both idiots?

  
This was definitely what had her brother in a funk, but luckily, Lup was an excellent problem solver, “Hey, did he add you first?”

  
“Hm. Yeah.”

  
“So,” Lup led, gesturing outward with her wine glass, “He was thinking about you too, yeah? Probably you just made him a little nervous. But that’s okay, dude’s kinda shy, right? Him and Barry were so quiet unless you started them on nerdy stuff. And anyway, I see him sometimes, and he’s still super duper nice. He’s not gonna blow you off, bro.”

  
Taako sighed again, staring into what little wine was left in his glass like it might hold the answers he sought. “Yeah. Yeah, okay, you’re right,” he seemed to pull himself together a little bit, “Besides, if he’s single, he’d have to be crazy not to be interested, right? Taako, from Youtube, _a star on the rise_.”

  
And even putting aside the internet, he was becoming beloved local figure for a lot of folks. Lup was pretty proud of her brother, even if he was pretty self-involved most of the time. He was doing good, just. He was clearly restless still… but if _he_ thought he could handle dating, on top of everything else, she was gonna do her best to support that. It was going to be proper dating though, more than what he’d done before. Kravitz was too important to him to be a fling. No wonder Taako was so flummoxed.

  
“He’d have to be crazy, for sure. You’re a catch, Koko.”

 

 

* * *

 

 

When Lup got home, Barry was ready to hit the hay. He’d only been staying up to wait for her, and was half asleep on the couch when she came in.

  
“Babe, you’ll never believe what’s finally happening,” she announced with spirit as she sat on the floor below him.

  
Barry squinted at her sans-glasses from the couch, still clearly out of it, “Uhh. Taako’s… going on TV?”

  
“Not that. Not yet, anyway, no.” She grinned, “He’s decided... to pursue  _ Kravitz _ .”

  
“Oh wow. Huh. I thought he said he wasn’t interested.”

  
“No, no, he said that to  _ you _ , but he told  _ me _ it was a bad idea to date your hot friend,” she raised her eyebrows, looking thoughtful, “But I guess the statute of limitations is off on the  _ ‘friend’ _ part? Boy’s real nervous, I gotta say. You didn’t hear anything from Krav, did you?”

  
Barry shook his head, definitely awake now, “No. But we don’t exactly… gossip, so that’s not weird. Should I ask him about it?”

  
“Noooo! I’ll do it. If he thinks I’m Taako at first it’ll be real easy to figure his sitch out. Is his number still the same?” she already had her phone out, scrolling down her contacts.

  
“Babe, it’s midnight, don’t call him,” he sat up as she stuck her tongue out at him, “But yeah, same number as always. He probably has your number, still, too, so I don’t think you’d fool him anyway.”

  
Lup pulled up a messaging app instead, typing as she spoke, “Not everyone’s great at keeping their contacts when they change phones, I coulda tried it.”

  
“Anyway,” Barry ruffled her already-messy hair as he got up, “I’m going to bed. Don’t stay up too late?”

  
“Yeah, yeah, _mom_.” Lup groused, hitting send.

  
00:04

Lup:  _ Hey Krav it’s Lup! Are you still doing that orchestra thing?? I was wondering when the meetings for that were, it’s been a while but I still know violin and stuff! _

  
To her surprise, she got a message back pretty quickly. See,  _ Barry _ , normal people were too awake at midnight!

  
Kravitz:  _ Hello, Lup! Nice to hear from you. We have a website that should have that information posted on it, if you’re interested. _

  
Lup did a quick search for their suburb and ‘orchestra’ and got a very badly made website. She didn’t even bother clicking around on it. It was just very, very bad. On the front page was zero information, and now she wondered how the hell anyone knew to go to this thing.

  
Lup:  _ Dude has it been updated in the last five years?? Just tell me the times you meet at _

  
Kravitz:  _ Thursday at 6pm. Are you bringing Barry? _

  
Lup:  _ I’ll ask around to see if anyone wants to come with. ;) _

  
She wasn’t technically lying, Barry could maybe come with. It also wasn’t like she was setting up a date. She was setting up a “see each other in the flesh” session, which was pretty different. Also, she’d be there to third wheel-slash-mediate, and also also, Kravitz would be busy for the duration. It was the perfect crime.

  
Lup sent her brother a message. He would either be passed out or drunk-editing his video, and regardless, it was fine to bother him at midnight.

  
00:11

Lup:  _ Hey bro we’re gonna go to the orchestra on Thursday, make Ren cancel all your shit _

  
She got up to start getting ready for bed while she waited for a reply. Halfway through brushing her teeth she got a response. And then another. Lup finished up her nighttime bathroom routine (cleaning face, brushing hair, using the toilet, etc etc) while her phone buzzed away on the counter. When she picked the phone up to plug it in on the bedside table, she had to stifle a laugh.

  
Taako:  _ why are you always so excited _

  
Taako:  _ to meddle in my affairs _

  
Taako:  _ ughhh _

  
Taako:  _ THE WORST SISTER _

  
Taako:  _ i love you lulu but youre the actual devil _

  
Taako:  _ ps how formal is this so-called ‘orchestra’ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i got excited and wrote two more chapters after y'all's lovely support yesterday!! so im celebrating by posting another chapter today. im thinking i'll post 2-3 times a week, if i can, but this week might be wild, who knows. love y'all and thank you for the comments and kudos. i couldn't ask for a nicer welcome. :)


	4. The Angel and the Fool

Taako was in the middle of berating his sister when he got a response, and not from her... and not from Ren, who he’d already texted about Thursday.

  
00:13

Kravitz:  _ It’s so great to hear from you, Taako. I’ve been informed that I was always this handsome, but it was my mother saying it so maybe that doesn’t count. _

  
And suddenly, all the dumb tension he’d been building up for a full day evaporated, and Taako couldn’t help but gasp out a laugh as he replied,

  
Taako:  _ noooo moms dont count oh my god krav, how are you real???? _

  
Kravitz:  _ Hmmm, sounds fake but okay… (This is all a joke.) _

  
Taako:  _ yeah yeah krav it was really funny _

  
Taako: ... _ i miss hanging out with you tbh _

  
There was a pause while Kravitz was probably cringing at him. Taako buried his face in his pillow, wondering for the millionth time if he wasn’t making a mistake. He couldn’t! Fuck up! This thing! The stakes were way too high… like, he hadn’t been appreciating his friendship with Kravitz enough over the last… decade, but if he messed up and Krav hated him, that’d be worse than just not seeing each other at all. Why had Kravitz even added him in the first place, Taako had been pre _eetty_ fucking sure sure they had some unspoken distance thing. Or something.

  
The phone buzzed and forced him to roll over and look at it.

  
00:17

Kravitz:  _ I miss chatting with you daily, like we used to……… Is that too much? _

  
And then, before Taako could figure out how to answer that, another messaged appeared,

  
Kravitz:  _ I’m not sure how serious you were about, um. Asking if I was single. But I am. _

  
Kravitz:  _ And, uh, if that was a goof, then don’t worry about it. _

  
Taako frowned, less at the info, and more at the way that Krav was saying it. Maybe they were honestly both. Just. Too gay to function? How the hell had all of their friends hooked up when he and Kravitz couldn’t even  _ text _ without giving each other an out. Like even hearing from each other, just a few words, might be too annoying, somehow? He let out a long breath, and started jamming out responses so he wouldn’t leave the poor guy hanging.

  
Taako:  _ it wasnt a goof _

  
Taako: _ ngl i was pretty drunk when i asked but i guess ill stand by my shit _

  
Taako:  _ this is me saying like. if you were interested that im interested in like, idk a coffee or something _

  
And now, Taako really wished he and Lup hadn’t killed off that bottle earlier... He realized, fuzzily, that maybe he shouldn’t be making apologies for Drunk Taako if he was also currently Drunk Taako.

  
00:23

Kravitz:  _ It’s not no. _

  
Kravitz: _But_ _ maybe if we get a coffee… can we do it as friends first? I haven’t seen you in a long time, what if you show up in mom jeans? _

  
Kravitz:  _ I’d have to leave immediately, if it was a date. It’s the law. _

  
Taako couldn’t really express, alone and floppy at half-past midnight, how relieved he was to take this slow. Like, yes, he wanted to jump those bones. But he  _ knew _ he’d built Kravitz up over the years, that crush he never acted on, the cute boy in his dreams. It would be unfair to Krav to try and make him fit into a mold that was more fantasy than reality. At least Taako felt like he’d known the guy pretty well before, so that fantasy was grounded in out-of-date facts, it just. It wasn’t going to be the same as real, grown up, flesh boy Kravitz.

  
Taako:  _ u know id never do u dirty like that _

  
Taako:  _ but yeah u right. how bout on like sunday? we can figure out a time later _

  
Hopefully, the real thing would be even better? Taako really hoped so. Especially since his sister was forcing him to go stalk the poor guy before this coffee not-date was even gonna happen. Things couldn’t get too out of hand with her there to stop him from doing anything dumb, though. Probably.

 

 

* * *

 

 

Things did get out of hand, but not immediately, in spite of Lup’s presence.

  
They’d showed up to the high school, where the community orchestra met, and walked in like they owned the place (they basically still did-- sometimes Merle asked one of them to pick up Mavis, who was a Junior this year). It was pretty easy to guess where to meet, considering they’d gone to school here, and Lup had done orchestra senior year. Also, there were like... a bunch of other adults all walking to the same place. You didn’t have to be a fucking genius to figure it out.

  
Taako had insisted on finding a seat a ways away from the stage, because he didn’t know if it was cool or not that he’d come to see Kravitz before their agreed-upon meeting. He really didn’t believe Lup when she kept insisting that, “Kravitz already knows I was coming! And probably guessed that you were, too. Honestly, it’s not a big deal, dude, chill.”

  
But Taako was not chill. He’d spent an hour on his makeup (sparkly and cute enough that it was noticeable, but there were So Many iterations of that), and then another two hours figuring out what to wear. (He’d gone with skinny jeans and a cute sweater, studs in his ears instead of dangly shit. The skirts had felt too flirty, and dress shirts had felt too stiff... and if he dressed like hot garbage today Kravitz would call off the not-date  _ for sure _ .) It was a very good thing that he’d left work at noon, because if he’d had any less than five hours to get ready, his hair probably wouldn’t have gotten done in time.

  
Lup looked stupidly effortless in her work blazer and slacks, and it was pissing him off that she looked cool even though she wasn’t trying to impress anybody. Taako hoped beyond hope they didn’t stand out, for maybe the first time in his adult life.

  
Everyone started to file from some back corridor onto the auditorium stage below them, setting up what they needed to, chatting amicably with each other. When Kravitz walked in (and it had to be him; nobody else's presence made Taako sit up and pay attention like this), the room hushed some. The low murmur continued for a minute, and then faded as Kravitz got situated.

  
There was some kind of uninspiring warm up routine that Taako fidgeted through. He wasn’t really sure, now, why Lup had dragged him here. He wasn’t exactly kicking or screaming, but Taako would’ve been good out there, not in here, not watching Kravitz’s back from a hundred feet away in his old high school.

  
But eventually silence fell again, and everyone shuffled their music to a particular page, and Taako’s ears perked up, expecting a real song.

  
It was a real song, but wasn’t one he’d heard before, he realized, or at least... not one he’d heard with an actual arrangement. It was one of the songs from Kravitz’s little demo videos, the ones where the camera was stupid and you had to watch the ceiling while he played. But it sounded so different like this, so much fuller.

  
Taako didn’t know a lot about music, it just wasn’t the kind of art he understood, but this almost instantly had a warm feeling filling up his chest to bursting. The song was such a downer, but he was loving it? He watched Kravitz’s back as he conducted the group, as his arms and back and head shifted with purposes that Taako didn’t really understand, but did  _ feel _ . That warmth overflowed and overwhelmed him. Kravitz was  _ so good _ . Was this song one of his?

  
Lup touched his arm gently, and Taako startled a little. He leaned over obligingly so she could whisper, “You okay?”

  
Taako realized that he was crying probably two minutes too late to play it cool. He patted his cheeks and eyes carefully, to avoid smudging his makeup, and glanced back at Lup, “I’m okay.”

  
But the tears weren’t stopping.  _ What the fuck? _ The song started to wind down, and when it stopped, it wasn’t like the people on stage expected an applause. Nobody was supposed to be in the audience, anyway, right? He clamped down his mouth in a firm line to keep any embarrassing hiccups from escaping, rummaging in his purse for a packet of tissues. This was not the impression he wanted to be making! Taako from Youtube,  _ Big Fucking Sap! _

  
The next song was a lot rougher, and Taako pulled himself together, leaning into Lup and basically daring her to call him on it. Whatever, she’d done this to him by bringing him here, she knew what she was signing up for. And if his mascara got on her clothes, that was a Lup problem, not a Taako problem.

  
He got things under control and stole a water bottle from Lup’s purse, sipping on it. She was definitely not going to let his big gay reaction go unmentioned, but there was no way,  _ no way _ , he was going to let Kravitz see him tonight. Even with the tissue dabbing, he probably looked like he’d been crying, and either it’d be obvious why, or Kravitz would ask what was wrong, and both of those were going to fuck him up in a major way. Taako started to gather up his things, leaning over to murmur in Lup’s ear, “Hey, going to the bathroom. I’ll meet you at the car?” She nodded, lip quirked a little. “Please,” Taako pleaded as quietly as he could, “Do not,  _ do not _ , do no _ ooot _ tell Krav I was here. Please?”

  
He didn’t wait for a response to that, crouching down to begin his escape. Some dudes in the orchestra would probably see him, but Kravitz had his back to the seats, so it didn’t matter. He’d go hide and clean up in the bathroom for a few minutes... and then go home and get messed up so he didn’t have to think too hard about why he was  _ crying _ over  _ classical music _ .

  
Taako grimaced at his reflection in the mirror, thankful for the waterproof mascara holding up, but less thankful the rest. His eyes were red around the edges, and there were tracks through his foundation. It was maybe a miracle that he’d kept things simple, instead of total-contour-glamour-etc, for this outing. He shoved at the push-faucet and ran his hands under the water, wishing that it was warmer, and started to clean up. If he just cleaned off his cheeks, he’d probably look mostly okay.

  
As he dried off carefully with a rough paper towel, he wondered if it was better to own up to crying, or to pretend he was high? Which red eyes were more on-brand, for  _ Taako™ _ ?

  
The music that’d drifted into the hall bathroom came to an end and Taako hustled out of there, hopping into the passenger seat of Lup’s car and reaching over to turn it on. He’d ‘borrowed’ her keys when he was stealing her water bottle earlier.

  
He spaced out in relative silence (maybe meditating? He’d never been good at that) for ten minutes before the driver-side door opened, startling him out of it. Taako turned to his sister with a wary look, hoping beyond hope that she’d taken pity on his poor, dumb soul and kept quiet to The Boy.

  
“Sooo,” she started, pulling out of the parking lot and not looking at all surprised about the car being on already, “I might actually come and practice with them next week? It looked like fun, and Krav sounded like he was excited to have more violin players. Something about asking Barry to come, yadda yadda.”

  
Taako waited, expecting another shoe to fall. He knew Lup’s patterns pretty goddamn well, because they were not so different from _his_ patterns when he wanted to make someone squirm.

  
“I didn’t tell him you were there, but he looked like he had ma _ aaybe _ expected you to be there?" Her face was totally innocent as he sank down into his seat some. "Ma _ aaybe _ a little disappointed to see just little old me sitting there?” Lup hummed, “Anyway, just a thought, don’t mind me.”

  
He kicked his shoes off and pulled a knee up toward his chest, wrapping his arms around it. Taako stared out ahead, ears tucked down, feeling like maybe he’d been dumb to hide. Kravitz wasn’t judgey (not about regular stuff like feelings or tardiness -- maybe sometimes about fashion). Maybe he could chill the fuck out about messing things up before they’d even started... easier said than done.

  
Just the thought of putting himself out there, though… it was still really fucking scary? The last time Taako had been this nervous, he’d been sitting in a meeting with investors, looking to get a smallish bakery started in town. But maybe he didn’t need to be so anxious, because, like. Until things had gotten weird, with puberty and hormones and stuff, he and Kravitz had always just gotten along, it'd been easy. They’d been super great friends.  _ What was he so scared of? _

  
Taako sat up and leaned forward to rest his chin on his knee, “Thanks, sis.”

  
“Hmm?” Lup glanced at him briefly, still focused on the road.

  
“It was good to see him.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> now i've got 10 chapters done (turns out having stuff posted was a good motivator for me?? who knew) so here's another chapter for y'all!!
> 
> thanks again for your support, it's been a delight to know people are reading and enjoying this :)
> 
> ps who else besides johann and brad should be in the orchestra...... maybe someday we'll visit with someone there besides krav. carey on the cello and killian on a lil piccolo lmao. ok bye i love u.


	5. All The Rage Back Home

Kravitz left practice feeling pretty neutral, all things considered. He felt satisfied and happy for having had a good and productive practice, but weirdly disappointed that Lup hadn’t gotten Taako or Barry to come along with her. Not that he wasn’t genuinely happy to see her… but when he’d turned around and seen that face that the twins shared, he’d almost forgotten that it was Lup and not her brother, and his heart had given a weird thump in spite of his confusion.

  
He drove to the grocery store to get something ready-made for dinner (a ‘fresh’ calzone was at least a few steps up from a hot pocket, right?), headed home, and stared at the ceiling as he ate. What was happening to him? For the last few days, he’d been sitting at work having way too much time in his own head. Even when he wasn’t thinking _specifically_ about whatever this reconnection with Taako was, he was still thinking about him.

  
It was like his ‘ _how often do I think about my muse_ ’ meter went from ‘ _when I write music, of course_ ’ to ‘ _just always, just all the time_ ’ over the course of two days.

  
And then, speak of the devil, his phone chimed and lit up. It was Taako, through Fantasy Facebook Messenger again.

  
21:07

Taako: _hey krav whats ur actual number so i dont gotta open another app all the time_

  
Kravitz snorted, his mood instantly lifted by degrees (a worrying sign, but he’d think about that later.)

  
Kravitz: _I’ve had literally the same number since I was twelve._

  
Taako: _back then lup and i had to share a phone!! maybe she kept the old contacts u dont know_

  
Kravitz: _So you don’t still have it saved?_

  
There was a pause in which Kravitz imagined Taako was checking his contacts. He remembered how excited Taako and his sister had been to finally get a phone in sophomore year of high school. They’d had to save up allowance for two years to afford one, and had to share it, but they’d earned it themselves.

  
He’d been privileged enough to be gifted one in middle school, but apps hadn’t been as big back then, and none of his friends had had their own phone for another few years... so all it really meant was that he could call them on their home phones without risk of his mom accidentally ending up on the line.

  
21:13

Taako: _ok wise guy i guess i did still have it_

  
Taako sent this through regular Fantasy SMS, now.

  
Taako: _didnt need zuckerfuck reading over my shoulder ya feel??_

  
Taako: _anyway how are you? lup said you did a music thing_

  
“A music thing…” Kravitz shook his head, chuckling. He shoved his paper plate from dinner into a compost bin while he tried to figure out how much he should talk up his life. Things hadn’t been going super great lately until... maybe now? Still undecided. It took him a long time to formulate a pretty simple reply,

  
21:16

Kravitz: _I conducted at the community orchestra. She said she’d try and come to actually practice with us next week. You’re welcome to come by, even if for some reason our not-date goes really bad. You don’t play anything, do you?_

  
Taako: _nah man whats a music_

  
Taako: _jkjk_ _but yeah thats cool!! are u still doing music as a job or_

  
Kravitz: _I’m… not doing it the way I’d like to be, but technically yes. It’s kind of rough right now, to be honest, Taako. :(_

  
Kravitz: _But don’t worry about me._

  
Taako: _dude no!! that blows_

  
Taako: _i watched one of your cool little bedroom concert vids or w/e and they were really good!!_

  
Taako: _ur so great at this shit_

  
Taako: _like way better than you were back in the day lmao no offense to baby krav_

  
Kravitz: _The last music class we had together, you made the teacher literally cry. I don’t think you’ve really got any ground to stand on, talking shit to baby me._

  
Kravitz had replied before really taking in the situation. Taako had been watching those things? Those videos were just for fun, but he didn’t really expect anyone but his mom to really watch them. The idea that Taako had been poking around on his page enough to know what he posted was embarrassing, but also kind of flattering? His face felt hot.

  
21:22

Taako: _baby u wasnt super great at music but he tried hard and it paid off so_

  
Taako: _i guess we should probably praise him?? anyway so i had an idea_

  
This was a mildly scary prospect, all things on the horizon considered, but Kravitz gamely waited as the multi-text chain came through.

  
Taako: _feel free to tell me to fuck off with this but_

  
Taako: _have u ever done like a jingle? or just like a hook for something?_

  
Taako: _i know classics and shit are your jam but surely you kno how music is in this modern age_

  
Taako: _anyway ive got this video series that i do and i was thinking it needed something_

  
Taako: _and if ur game i was thinking maybe it needed a lil kravitz magiccc_

  
Kravitz had… a degree. But it was not in jingle-writing, for sure. But he did know music? Yes… But did he know pop music or how to do anything that was even pop-adjacent…? He didn’t know if he had it in him, but some deeply unsatisfied-with-life part of him was pulling at his gut, trying to say ‘yes, come on, if you do this he’ll love you for real.’ He squashed that last part down, because it was a dumb way to ‘earn’ someone’s love.

  
21:33

Kravitz: _Gonna be honest, it’s not my strong suit. But I can try? Send you some demos and we can go from there? (Also, my dear friend, is this a paid gig?)_

  
Taako: _anything you do is gonna be like 10000x better than what i could fart out so the bar is low_

  
Taako: _and donut worry i will pay u_

  
Taako: _in $$$ or maybe in baked goods, we shall see how it goes handsome :)_

  
Somehow, the prospect of getting baked goods made by Taako was actually preferable to cash, but he thought it would probably sound cooler if he kept that idea to himself. Kravitz sat up and leaned forward over the back of the couch, deciding that, if he was playing it cool, he should maybe pretend he didn’t know about Taako’s channel? They’d talked about it just now, of course, but if he divulged that he’d watched several videos already, that’d make him look creepy.

  
21:36

Kravitz: _Sounds good. Should I be watching some of these videos to figure out your theme or do you want… just some sounds from the void._

  
Kravitz: “ _Sounds From The Void” sounds like something Johann would be into. But probably his style wouldn’t go with your whole Taako aesthetic, haha._

  
Taako: _honestly ur the only music dude i trust to be cool… but yeah uh just fantasy google my name or uh_

  
Taako: _the channel is sizzle it up with taako so you can probably find it easy_

  
Taako: _if theres any fakers out there pretending to be me pls send me their info so i can sue them for brand infringement etc u know how it is_

  
Kravitz’s jaw was starting to hurt from smiling, now. It was so so good to be just… reading in Taako’s funny, cute voice again. He had the dangerous thought that he wished they’d had this conversation over the phone as a call… but remembered that at least this way, he could scroll through the words again when he was bored at work.

  
21:39

Kravitz: _I’ll be sure to check it out. Any recommendations? Should I try cooking along with the show?_

  
Taako: _dude yessss pls do and text me the results_

  
Taako: _try the yakisoba one, u can get the right noodles in the freezer section but theyre kinda hidden_

  
Taako: _and if ur feeling real ambitious try the macarons because i wanna see that disaster LOL_

  
Kravitz: _Should I be sending these pics live-tweet style, or just send you the final result?_

  
He just barely stopped himself from adding, “Because at that point you might as well be here making it with me,” to the end of that one.

  
Cooking with Taako, or even just being around a cooking Taako, was basically an ideal date concept. They didn’t have to go anywhere or do anything… but yeah, maybe it was slightly too early to be thinking of ways they could spend time alone together in private. Especially when _Kravitz_ had been the one to nervously downgrade the coffee they were getting on Sunday from Probably a Date to Explicitly Not a Date.

  
21:42

Taako: _deffo send lots of pics_

  
Taako: _if it gets fuckt up then ill know how to explain it better in the next vid_

  
Taako: _but lol does anyone even use cooking vids to cook_

  
Taako: _i think they just watch them for food porn purposes tbh_

  
They texted a little more that evening, Kravitz working his way through a chunk of Taako’s back catalogue of videos. It felt slightly less voyeuristic to know that he had total permission to watch them. He still wasn’t sure how he felt about Taako watching _his_ , but it was comfortably easy to let himself laugh and have fun with this over-the-top persona Taako put on for filming.

  
He didn’t know enough about food to be anything other than impressed with the end results on each video, but every now than then he’d send Taako a joking critique of a particular outfit. He kept getting emoji reactions in return, which shouldn’t have warmed his face the way they did.

  
Kravitz couldn’t find it in him to be upset that he suddenly had several things on his metaphorical plate. One, the object of his oldest affections was going to hang out with him on Sunday, and might be interested in a date. Two, he had a project to work on, which _seemed_ like work until he remembered that he didn’t have a lot of fun during _or_ after work, usually… And three, whether things worked out romantically or not, he had someone to talk to who was funny and fresh. Everything old is new again, and all of that.

  
For the first time in a while, things were maybe looking up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i guess my enthusiasm is A Lot, y'all got me in that positive feedback loop. i wrote 12 chapters already and planned out through 29 SO FAR so holy fuck. rating will go up in uhh a few chapters. i'll put beginning notes on anything people might wanna skip though. 
> 
> i'm in the planning stages of a fic about my other special interest/life experience: workin' at a theme park way too long LMAO but its gonna be so fun I HOPE ?? so look forward to that in like a week or so probably.
> 
> thank y'all again for your support, please feel free to chat with me on [tumblr](http://pepgold.tumblr.com/) none of my friends are into taz, ghh... anyway i love u have a good day bye <3


	6. No Bones

On Sunday, Taako did his very best not to get worked up. He forced himself to take a long, relaxing shower, and planned his beauty regimen before he started applying everything so he wouldn’t feel compelled to re-do it. He blow-dried his hair patiently, pulled it into two cute braids, and went to the closet.  


Taako had _very maturely_ gone through every item of clothing he owned last night, so that today he’d only have to pick between five different looks. In the fresh light of day, he could easily rule out two of the outfits, and then a third that would look dumb with his hair. By the time he was settling on a frankly _demure_ knee-length dress, leggings, and crop top jacket, he remembered that he ought to look at a clock.  


He was supposed to have been at the coffee shop five minutes ago, _nonononono_ …  


Taako pulled on some boots that he knew he could run in, which he was too harried to realize actually went okay with his jacket, and flew out the front door like an elf possessed. Fashionably late was real cool and all, but it would take another five minutes to drive there, and then probably five more to park and run to the shop, and by then Kravitz would think Taako had stood him up fuckfuck _fuck_ …  


He knew, somewhere in his heart, that he’d probably be forgiven... and that was the worst part about it! He hated feeling guilty! Fuck!  


He parked as neatly as he could manage, nearly locking his purse in the car, and started to speed-walk across the parking lot, halfway there before something crossed his peripheral vision a little ways away. Taako stopped at the edge of the lot and gave this thing a second of his attention.  


His grimace broke and burst into a stupid smile immediately, because Kravitz was also running across the parking lot, looking about as frantic as Taako’d just felt. His heart was still hammering in his chest, but it was definitely because of the adrenaline and exercise, and not for any other reasons.  


“Krav!” Taako waved, “I’m here! It’s cool!”  


It was cute to watch those same emotions cross Kravitz’s handsome face: first confusion, then relief, and then... oh no more confusion. The half-elf jogged over, looking concerned, “Were you leaving? I’m so _so_ sorry, I got pulled in to work a morning shift, and then the midshift showed up late… why are you laughing.”  


Taako couldn’t help it. They were both really bad at this and it was so disarming to be experiencing it in the flesh, “No, bubala, we’re both late, you’re good.” He managed to say this in between breaths as he laughed his ass off, bent over and grinning.  


Kravitz wiped at his temple, maybe trying to get rid of sweat or something, and Taako made himself calm down. He couldn’t keep the smile off his face, though. They were so dumb.  


“Maybe we should just say we’re meeting at 11:30, next time,” Kravitz finally said after they both collected themselves up, “That way we’ll both turn up at noon and all. Reverse engineer our bad habits.”  


“Man, I missed you,” Taako blurted, and then started to walk toward the shop, hoping that Kravitz hadn’t noticed how red his ears probably were.  


Kravitz’s legs were longer, so he caught up easily, “I meant to go by the bakery sometime, but the lines were pretty intimidating,” Taako glanced at him. “That’s a pretty dumb reason not to say hello, though,” Kravitz conceded.  


“We’re both guilty of that, bud. Fixing it now, though, maybe. We’ll see.” Taako was surprised to find his voice steadying again, some of the fluster falling away as he graciously let Kravitz hold the door open for him.  


They ordered their drinks separately, because this was Not a Date, though Taako still offered to pay for Kravitz’s drink and got waved off. He claimed a little two-person spot by a window and waited for either his friend or his caffeine to join him.  


A minute or so went by with no Kravitz, and he looked up to see that the sweet guy was waiting on both of their drinks at the pickup counter. Taako wanted to bury his face in his hands, but resisted the urge. How was Kravitz still single?? This was ridiculous, he was such a good dude.  


Another minute passed and Taako watched him pick up both cups, one labelled “Taco” and the other one “Crab It’s,” and bring them over.  


“What a gentleman,” Taako accepted his paper cup and took a cautious sip. Passable. Every time he ordered a white chocolate mocha, it was like rolling the dice. Would it taste like sugary, good garbage, or like literal gravel from the street? Today it was closer to good.  


Kravitz took off his jacket ( _those arms!!!_ ) and sat, opening his drink to try and stir the whipped cream into it. Taako wondered what his drink was, but maybe he could use deductive reasoning (like Angus was always going on about) instead of asking Kravitz a million questions.  


“How’s Merle doing?” Kravitz offered his own question, and it seemed like a weird one on the surface, but Taako guessed that asking after each other’s parents was a pretty safe opener.  


“Pretty alright, considering he’s going through a nasty divorce,” Taako shrugged.  


Kravitz looked appropriately concerned about this, his own shorter ears twitching up, “Hecuba, right? Mavis and Mookie are…”  


“Oh, they’re fine. Mookie’s like twelve, now. I’m sure he isn’t happy about it, but Mavis is old enough to know they weren’t doing great together. I wouldn’t worry. But thanks.”  


Taako and Lup had been adopted at age four by a single dwarf, and when they’d been old enough to wonder how that happened, they’d also been old enough to guess that nobody wanted twin elven terrors in their house. Especially ones with magic like theirs. These days, if you had any magic at all, it wasn’t going to be a lot. Taako only had the transmutation, and was wary of using it. Lup’s fire, especially when they were little, had been A Lot to deal with.  


“But Merle’s alright? How’s custody going to work? Mavis isn’t eighteen, yet… gosh, last time I saw her, she was probably six? Mookie was a baby.”  


When they’d been ten, their weird short dad had gotten married for reasons Taako still didn’t really understand. He’d decided a while back that he didn’t want to know. Hecuba had already had Mavis, who was a baby (and not Merle’s, Lup had done some girl-time chatting with their stepmother over the years). It was a strange situation, but Taako and Lup had taken to having a baby sorta-sister with gusto. Weirdly, Mavis hadn’t gotten any wild tendencies from Taako, Lup, or Merle. She was calm and collected in a way that the twins sometimes wished they knew how to be.  


“She’s so big now! Or, well, she’s still short. Y’know, dwarves, but she’s killin it. Don’t even worry about it. I’m sure she’s gonna want to stay with Mookie until she goes out on her own, probably some kinda joint custody thing for them both?”  


When Mookie was born, things didn’t get a lot better. Taako and Lup were in high school already, and really not interested in helping take care of a wild baby. They’d warmed up to Mookie as he grew into A Person, but by then they were moving out into an apartment together. A lot easier to be pleasant grown up siblings if you didn’t have to live in the same house as your demanding much-littler brother.  


“That’s good to hear. Hopefully Merle will be chill again,” Kravitz smiled, sipping at his drink, “Seemed like every time we tried to negotiate a sleepover with Hecuba, it was just not gonna happen.”  


“Oh for sure, lady is allergic to fun. She was an ok mom, but no sense of humor.” Retroactively, Taako’s favorite joke of Hecuba’s had been to act like she was looking for a receipt to return the twins from wherever Merle had bought them. He was pretty sure that had to be a joke. “How’s Raven? I’ve heard she has good taste.” Taako exaggerated a smirk, hoping Kravitz might remember his own dumb joke from before.  


With a squirm ( _bingo!_ ), Kravitz regaled Taako with the latest comings and goings of a woman Taako considered a real goddamn queen, Raven Macallister-Fortuna. She was still investing in the arts, working on restoring the landscape and headstones at the local cemetery, and being a really badass philanthropist.  


When Taako had been little, he’d wanted to be like his friend’s mom when he grew up. As near as he’d been able to tell back then, she was always having parties and wearing beautiful gowns and stuff (when he’d visit for playdates, he’d see pictures of her looking so pretty on the wall), and probably always eating really tasty food (better than Merle’s gross granola, anyway).  


She’d gotten remarried eight years ago, but Taako would’ve known about that even without Kravitz’s update, since she was a minor celebrity and there’d been a few stories about it on the local news. From what he could tell, Taako was pretty sure she’d married a genuine goddess. Which, _goals_ . Itsus Fortuna seemed pretty great, and Kravitz sounded like he loved her dearly, so Taako rested his chin in his hand and smiled, “I’m glad your mom found someone great. She deserves it.”  


Even as a kid, Taako hadn’t ever asked Kravitz about his dad. Probably a human, since the drow part came from Raven, but it hadn’t seemed like his business then. Still really wasn’t, now. Kinda like how Kravitz had never pried into Merle not being Taako and Lup’s real dad (though in their case, it was _really obvious_ that they weren’t related.)  


“They’re really happy. Somehow they found out I was going to see you again, so you’ll probably have to come over for dinner sometime,” Kravitz looked nervous as he said this, despite his casual tone.  


Taako was finding himself motivated to save them both from awkward situations, now that they were hanging out and it was _totally fine_ . Seeing the handsome guy in front of him, the one he’d longed for for ages, look _nervous_ was spurring him into action as he said, “I’d really like that. Think we’ll have squeezed in an actual date by then?”  


As Kravitz’s eyes jumped up in shock, Taako wondered for a second if maybe he’d made a mistake, but instead what he got was, “So you’re still interested?”  


“Are you?” Taako tried not to sound like he cared, but definitely failed.  


“Y-yeah. Yes. Of course I am,” Kravitz put a hand back to rub the back of his neck, and Taako indulged himself in staring at the muscles of Kravitz’s arm, “I still wasn’t really sure if it was a goof, even though you’d said you meant it.”  


_Yeah,_ Taako figured, that was fair.  


“I mean… we’ll see where we get, right?” Taako had been aiming for unaffected again, but landed somewhere closer to hopeful, “This was nice, and you’re cute even after running, so like. Win-win for Taako.”  


“Can I compliment you? If we’re doing those?”  


“I thrive on coffee and compliments,” Taako smiled, “And I’m all outta coffee, my dude”  


Kravitz looked thoughtful, which was scary. Maybe explicit permission to give compliments was too much power for one handsome fella. When he met Taako’s eyes again, Taako felt his ears start to heat up before Kravitz even said anything.  


“This whole time, you’ve been talking with your hands, and I know that’s not new, but I wanted to tell you that it’s really cute. And so’s your hair,” Kravitz probably had noticed the blush creeping across Taako’s face, because he kept going, “And your eyes look really nice with that lipstick.”  


“I suddenly remember why I didn’t ask you out before,” Taako said, feeling a little picked-on now, even though those were all very nice things to say.  


“Oh?”  


“You’re kind of an asshole,” Taako reached over to steal Kravitz’s coffee and took a sip before he could be told not to. It was really sweet. Absurdly sweet. It might have been a chai latte once, but it was basically a liquid dessert drink, now.  


Kravitz smiled crookedly as he stole back his drink, “Is that a dealbreaker?”  


“Hmmm, no. Guess it’s not.”  


There was a long moment where they were just staring at each other’s faces and smiling, which Taako would not be relaying to anybody who asked because it definitely hadn’t happened, before Taako stood up with a stretch and said, “I’ll text you about a proper date later. Maybe when I get some drafts on that jingle. Wink.” But he made sure to convey through casual and flirty body language that he wasn’t really going to hold a date hostage like some weirdo.  


Kravitz stood and held out a hand like maybe they were gonna shake hands? Who was the weirdo now??  


Taako took a step in to close the gap and pulled his silly, handsome friend into a hug. All through high school, they’d drifted away from physical affection. Taako knew it was weird attraction and hormones, on his end, but the result was that they hadn’t had a hug in, just. So long.  


It was so good. Taako smiled all the way home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you again for the support!!!!  
> it's really hard to not just update every day, but lol work's gonna start up again in a few weeks and i want to have as much buffer as possible for spring break (i'm at chapter 15?? still lots of editing but like. yo...)
> 
> i hope this not-a-date makes you smile because it MADE ME SMILE i love these boys so much...
> 
> (unrelated: my mom is finally to Reunion Tour so im looking forward to being able to actually mention Lup in any capacity out loud in my home without spoiling anything...)
> 
> have a nice day!!! and also i love you


	7. Stomach vs Heart

In an astonishing feat of self-restraint, Kravitz made himself do some some research on jingles before trying to actually write one. He learned some interesting stuff about how long a bump at the beginning of a video can be before an audience is annoyed, listened to a bunch of classic cooking show intros, and built up a portfolio of weirdly specific knowledge that he’d never needed to have before now.

  
All for Taako, who would’ve probably been satisfied with a musical fart in a box, as far as Kravitz could tell. But it  _ had to _ be good! It was going to potentially elevate the elf’s status in some way, it was going to be attached to Taako’s name. Kravitz couldn’t put out some garbage and call it good, not with someone else’s reputation on the line for it.

  
He’d gotten a few little five second hooks made, and none of them felt perfect but they _could_ be a start, when he decided to take a break from one project and work on another, _totally unrelated_ one. He pulled up that video that Taako had recommended he try and make, and paused it on the list of ingredients.

  
The only things that he already had were oil, pepper, and ketchup, so he made a grocery list and headed to the store. Kravitz knew the aisles here pretty well, so the trip was uneventful, save for the tricky noodles he’d been warned about. Bags on the counter, he returned to the video to double-check measurements.

  
Kravitz had really never learned how to cook. He had all the right pots and pans for it, because his mother wasn’t going to let him have an unfurnished apartment, but generally he ate out or got things to go. There were ramen or cereal dinners often enough to be sad.

  
Once he had everything portioned out like Taako’s video showed (it felt a little precious to have so many little bowls, and cleanup was probably going to be annoying, but it did feel like the Real Deal to have it all out to look at), Kravitz took a photo and sent it to the elf of the hour, unpausing the video.

  
“ _ Hey gang, I know you can buy something at the store that says it’s ‘yakisoba sauce’ but lemme tell ya, it takes like two seconds to make it yourself. So get the sugar, the soy sauce, the oyster sauce… _ ” Kravitz dutifully poured each thing into an appropriately sized bowl and dug around in a drawer for a whisk, pausing the video before Taako could leave him in the dust.

  
He got a text back.

  
19:22  
Taako: _ur making the noods! excellent and also good luck_

  
Taako:  _ can i make a send noods joke or is it too early for that ajfwdlksajf _

  
Kravitz grinned in spite of the warmth on his cheeks, whisking the sauce together with a shocking display of competence, and shooting Taako another photo.

  
Kravitz:  _ So far so good. _

  
Kravitz: _ PS is that what the teens are calling dick pics these days? Noodles? Horrible. _

  
Of course, this was a joke. He unpaused the video again to distract himself from the idea of getting sent any kind of naked  _ anything _ from Taako. He’d seen most of the elf in one state of undress or another, because gym classes and sleepovers both involved changing clothes, but that was a whole lifetime ago. Kravitz had been really relieved to be able to skip gym class in high school and do marching band as his physical fitness requirement. The temptation to look at Taako (or even the other cute boys, but really Taako) would’ve been killer.

  
Taako:  _ babe ill send u all the noodles u want just say the word lmao ;))) _

  
This, in contrast to video-Taako who sang out, “ _ So we’re gonna want to julienne these carrots, and I know what you’re thinking, is that a  _ verb? _ Or like,  _ who is she? _ That’s just what you do to make the carrots look liiike… this! See, fancy word, but you got it. For the green onions, though, we’re just gonna chop. There’s not really a fancier word for this one, though I guess you could probably slice 'em. Maybe we can make one up a fun, onion-specific word for next time though! Let me know in the comments… _ ”

  
Kravitz paused and unpaused as needed, chopping and slicing and julienning… his cutting board had never seen so much action. He felt like a pro so far, but only because Taako was explaining as he did stuff. And also, they hadn’t gotten to any actual cooking yet. His ingredients looked alright, all cut up like they were supposed to, and he sent another photo.

  
19:37  
Kravitz: _I like how you did your hair in this video, by the way. Check out my carrots._

  
Taako:  _ now thats definitely what the kids are saying these days. sending each other their ding dongs with the caption _

  
Taako:  _ check out my carrots _

  
Taako:  _ if you actually make this well im gonna sue btw _

  
Taako:  _ jkjk good job krab _

  
Kravitz managed to almost burn the meat while juggling the texting, the video-watching, the grinning from ear to ear. It was still going to be edible, though, so it would be alright. He threw the vegetables onto the skillet as video-Taako did, feeling increasingly out of his depth with the tools he was being made to use. Like oh right, Kravitz didn’t really actually know how to cook, oops.

  
He added the noodles, wondering how Taako was making it all look so effortless on the screen. He knew that some of this was an act (all the fun jokes, and none of the cutting remarks), but Taako’s actual cooking ability was incredible. It was no wonder that he was getting thousands of views already. The difference in the ways their hands moved spoke volumes to how confident Taako was, versus Kravitz.

  
“ _ Next we’re gonna do the sauce, and we’re almost done! Smells good already, but check this shit out! If you’re rad like me you can pour it like thiiis, but maybe at home you oughta just slop it on there... _ ” Kravitz just slopped it on, snorting at the sort of overhand-backward pour maneuver that Taako was doing from above his head.

  
Mixed up and then plated, Kravitz looked at his noodle dish with wonder. Even though he hadn’t felt especially confident, here was a whole plate of food that he’d made himself. And it had some actual vegetables, and it smelled great? He had to remind himself to take a photo and send it to Taako before digging in.

  
It was super tasty. His plate was empty before he knew it. There was more on the cooling skillet, but that would be a great lunch tomorrow… his phone buzzed as he was putting the leftovers away.

  
19:46  
Taako: _hell yeah!!! slam dunk for taako!_

  
Taako: _ hows it taste bubala _

  
Kravitz:  _ It was really good, Taako you’re incredible. _

  
Taako: _ was????? holy wow you already ate it all… _

  
Kravitz: _ This is the best meal I’ve had in months, and I overcooked half of it. Taako. It was so good. _

  
Taako: _ hmmmm so maybe i should cook for you sometime is what ur saying _

  
Kravitz: _ I wouldn’t turn that down, not for anything. You could kill me at the end of the meal and I’d still turn up to eat it, holy shit. _

  
Taako: _ relax omg _

  
Taako: _ maybe that can be our first date?? is that okay with you? _

  
Taako: _ or i could take u out to a nice restaurant or a movie, but uh _

  
Kravitz: _ Something lower pressure sounds great, honestly, yeah. Don’t need the gossip mill grinding anymore than it already is, lol. I’d hate to impose, but if you’re offering to cook, I’m there. _

  
If he wasn’t concerned about crossing a line that he, himself, was setting, Kravitz might have jokingly offered to pay for his meal in sexual favors. It didn’t stop that line of thinking from intruding into his buzzing, happy, wholesome thoughts.

  
Taako:  _ im not gonna let ya just sit and watch, pal _

  
Taako:  _ gonna have a hands-on lesson wink _

  
Kravitz put his phone on the counter and dragged a hand down his face. It just felt fast. But. He’d be lying if he wasn’t interested, eager even. Clearly Taako was interested (which was still so wild, frankly). There was a reason they were entertaining this in the first place: they were both alone, and liked each other to some extent.

  
But Kravitz was concerned that Taako was… maybe not interested in playing the long game, here. He’d never known Taako to be especially patient (maybe he’d grown into that somewhat?), and moving too fast into something physical might be fun for a little while… but Kravitz wasn’t sure it was going to work if that was all it was.

  
Still, the thought of Taako’s hands on him, even in chaste places like his shoulders or arms, was… it was _A Lot._  
  


19:59  
Taako:  _ krav? we can do whatever _

  
Taako:  _ didnt mean to make u uncomfortable _

  
He steeled himself and shifted in his seat a little, suddenly very aware of the heat pooling in his crotch, forcing himself to stop thinking of Taako touching anything.  _ Keep it together, Kravitz, you cannot get off on this while he’s apologizing to you, _ he thought.

  
Kravitz:  _ You’re fine, don’t worry. I’ll help. _

  
Kravitz:  _ How about next week? Let me know an evening that’s good for you. _

  
Taako:  _ ill check the schedule at work tomorrow and let u know _

  
Taako:  _ hey lup just got here im gonna go do some twin stuff, but _

  
Taako:  _ im gonna do a new vid soon, anything you wanna learn how to cook?? _

  
Kravitz:  _ How about mug cakes? Like a few kinds… _

  
Taako:  _ were gonna have to talk about ur sweet tooth young man… _

  
Taako:  _ but thats a genius idea and i love it thank you kravitz _

  
Kravitz:  _ You’re welcome! Have fun with Lup. _

  
Taako:  _ i will!! nightnight _

  
Taako:  _ if you hear from me again tonite, ill be drunk and u should disregard whatever i say _

  
Kravitz:  _ Understood. Goodnight, Taako. _

  
And if Kravitz retreated to his room to deal with his half-subsided erection, at least he didn’t have to feel bad about doing it  _ while _ he was chatting with Taako.

  
Still, he couldn’t help that imagined how Taako’s hands might feel on him, and was suddenly glad that he hadn’t _outright_ said anything about  physically taking it slow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [the yakisoba recipe i basically transcribed, if you wanna make noods.](https://www.justonecookbook.com/yakisoba/)
> 
> its technically past midnight SO i technically managed to leave a day in between chapters, yeehaw
> 
> im almost done outlining this fic and yall its gonna be ~40 chapters. luckily it is not a slow burn or anything. just lots of love and people around who love and support each other. and a plot, somehow, which is the biggest shock to me tbh. anyway i'm writing chapter 20 right now so i hope you enjoy this, and maybe continue to enjoy this in some capacity.
> 
> (rating went up because krav mentioned his dick, way to go buddy. anything more explicit than that will have a note at the beginning of the chapter so you can skip it. but yeah its gonna get wet and wild in a few chapters lmao)
> 
> have a good day, or night, and thank you as always for the support. <3


	8. Sun Hands

Taako woke up to see that he had received a zipped file in his bakery email from one  _ kravitzm at f-gmail dot com _ , and a message that read,

_  
Taako, _

_  
I know you’re probably still up, but I didn’t want to bother you with asking for your personal email, so. These are really really rough, I’ll fix them up more later, or just scrap them? I haven’t used any of these programs in a while, and my pop music skills are rusty-to-nonexistent. Sorry. _

_ Anyway, let me know if any of them jump out at you, I’ll give those ones extra attention. _

_  
Thanks, _

_ Kravitz _

_  
Attached: taakojingledemos01.zip _

  
Upon going to the computer, downloading, unzipping and looking at each one’s name, he opened the one called  _ weirdlysexy01.mp3  _ and immediately started laughing. This was a synthetic saxophone riff for like five seconds, and while it wasn’t the right fit for his channel, Taako knew in his heart that somewhere out there was a sexy fantasy youtube channel that deserved this gem.

  
He listened to each little track with interest, wondering how Kravitz had come up with them. They were nothing like his usual music, which, duh. Taako had known that this might actually be a little bit of a stretch for the half-elf to pull off, but he trusted Kravitz with his channel way more than Johann or Magnus or someone. Lup and Barry knew a little music, too, but they were busy.

  
The fifth one stood out above the rest, titled  _ flashsparkle01.mp3 _ . It was a little dramatic, but somehow through instruments conveyed the feeling of like…  _ magic _ . Taako liked this one best, and shot off a text to tell Kravitz so before getting ready for work.

  
05:39  
Kravitz: _Is this how early you always wake up? How are you alive, Taako??_

  
Taako:  _ relax babe, i dont always open up but the kid wanted the closing shift today so _

  
Kravitz:  _ Guess I’m glad I didn’t wake you up at midnight, then. Sorry for how bad the jingles are, I just wanted to give you some kind of progress. I honestly don’t know how short tracks work. _

  
Taako pulled on his socks and went to brush his hair out. It was going into a hair net anyway, so it didn’t need to be beautiful, but it didn’t do to let it go wild for long. He opted for a bouncy looped-bun and lipgloss. It was like five in the morning, he didn’t need to look like a beautiful elf this early in the day, just a very pretty one.

  
Taako:  _ dude i dont know shit about shit remember _

  
Taako:  _ i am but a simple idiot baker who cant tell a fiddle from a cello _

  
Kravitz:  _ One of those is... very big. _

  
Taako:  _ anyway theyre great. i think you should work on the sparkly one more but im loving these _

  
Taako:  _ it might not be your favorite art but its still art that you made _

  
Taako:  _ gotta take pride in your work my man ;) _

  
Taako:  _ anyway go back to sleep. u can come by the bakery later today for one free snack _

  
Kravitz:  _ I work later today, but I’ll try my best. Do I get to pick the snack? _

  
Taako:  _ hmmmm probably not _

  
Kravitz:  _ Tough, but fair. Have fun at work. Zzz, and all of that. _

  
Taako grinned as he got into his car. He couldn’t believe that a dork like this was making his heart feel so full and they hadn’t even kissed or anything. His defenses were already a little down anyway, but stuff like this was killing him. In a good way?

 

 

* * *

 

 

Opening went smoothly enough, even though Taako was a little late. He managed to get the morning pickup orders ready to go on time, and nothing else was quite so time-intensive as that so he worked on easy staple products. His special macarons, an olive loaf that was consistently sold out, the cookies some kids would come by and buy after school, three for a dollar. Taako wandered into the back again after a sale and did a fist pump into the air. Baking!

  
“What’s got you so perky, boss?” Ren chuckled as she pulled on her apron, right on time to save him from the brunch-lunch rushes.

  
Taako sighed wistfully, “You ever feel like… just happy?”

  
“Yeah? A lot of the time, Taako.”

  
“Okay, well, I usually don’t! I guess you usually see me, Taako, at my happiest, anyway,” Taako was folding croissant dough over and over, “I’m maybe going to be dating a guy, and uh, he’s the best?”

  
Ren looked at him warily, which, fair. The last relationship he’d had had been pretty fucking horrible, but Taako was sure he’d sounded excited about it at the time, too. Ren hadn’t been working for him, then, but she’d heard  _ all about it _ over the last year.

  
“No look, get this, I haven’t even gotten laid and I’m practically fucking singing! What the hell, right?”

  
“Taako!” She looked scandalized.

  
Taako put the dough back into the fridge so the butter wouldn’t warm up. “A real friend would wanna know all the gross stuff.” Taako stuck his tongue out at her.

  
“I’m your friend, but I’m also your employee, and regardless, I don’t wanna think about that. Or lack of that.  _ That _ at all, regarding you?” Her ears twitched up, “Glad you’re havin’ fun, though.”

  
“I  _ am _ having fun! I think he wants to take things slow but ugh, I’m definitely gonna kiss him on our date,” Taako washed his hands idly. He had so much energy but there weren’t any big orders to work on today, and making too much stuff wasn’t really fiscally responsible.

  
“I just told you ‘bout how I didn’t wanna hear that stuff at work! Tell Joaquin about how bad you wanna kiss your boyfriend.”

  
“Ew, no, he’s a  _ baby _ , Ren!”

  
She headed back to the front as the front door opened with a jingle, “He’s seventeen.”

  
“Anyone under twenty-one is a baby,” Taako grumbled, pulling out his phone to text Lup. Joaquin wouldn’t be in to work for another few hours anyway, and he’d bake more stuff than could fit in the front display if he just kept working.

  
10:10  
Taako: _lup lup lup if we had a not-date before our first date, can i retroactively call the other one the first date and this one the second date so i can kiss krav on it_

  
Taako:  _ this is important shit _

  
Lup:  _ Shit dude that is important _

  
Lup: _ I’ve got a class in 20 min tho so lets make this quick _

  
Lup: _ Did he ever say anything like “boy howdy I sure do hate kissing” in your presence?? _

  
Taako: _ no never. i want him to say boy howdy now though damn _

  
Lup: _ Focus up boyo _

  
Lup:  _ Now i’m telling you this in confidence as your sister, but this is not kravitz’s first kiss _

  
Taako: _ good uh. were gonna be 30 in two yrs thatd be real sad _

  
Lup: _ SO probably he likes kissing and also he likes you. If you ask first he’ll probably be down _

  
Taako: _ i dunno, _

  
Lup: _ Babe taako babe. You’re literally the reason krav knew he was gay in high school I WOULDN’T WORRY ABOUT WHETHER OR NOT HE WANTS TO KISS U _

  
Taako: _ how do u kno so much about kravs high school kissing history this is suspicious as fuck lulu _

  
Lup: _ Barry told me. Wait shit have you never heard this story _

  
Taako:  _ what _

  
Lup: _ Barry and krav made out once in high school as like an experiment they were each other’s first kisses fjaiojdsokafwj HOW HAVE I NOT TOLD YOU THIS STORY _

  
Taako: _ WHAT _

  
Lup: _ Bar was all “ok so maybe im not as into boys as i thought sorry krav” _

  
Taako:  _ WHAT _

  
Lup: _ AND KRAV WAS LIKE _

  
Lup: _ “Im so so into boys just not you sorry barry” _

  
Taako: _ oh my god _

  
Taako: _ wait but why would u think that meant he liked me… _

  
Lup: _ Dude yall are so dumb sometimes. Anyway I gotta go be a responsible adult with a job _

  
Taako buzzed with energy and struggled not to laugh loudly at this whole thing, because it was the funniest and cutest thing he’d ever heard in his life,  _ but _ there were at least five customers up front and only an open door frame separating him from them. He didn’t want to cause a dumb scene in the business that he owned.

  
He did want to text his brother-in-law and maybe-boyfriend and tease the hell out of them, but that could wait. He wanted to see Barry’s face when Taako would force him to retell the story later. And he didn’t want Kravitz to think he’d gone _ looking _ for teasing material. This one was too good to not use sometime though.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> lol i give up. i wrote like 3+ more chapters yesterday so honestly i'm just gonna post whenever i feel like it SORRY? not really sorry (the other solution would be to make longer chapters, but tbh i love that good good 1.5k little morsel of a chapter...)
> 
> not a lot to say this time except that im so hype about breaking 100 kudos on this dumb thing. it really means a lot to me that this uhh... first foray back into writing, for the first time since ~2010 or so, is good at all to anybody.
> 
> thank you so much for your support, have a nice day and i love you!!


	9. About Today

It wasn’t often that Raven was able to talk her son into coming over for dinner, he was always working or begging off with apologies that he’d come next time. She knew he was busy, or at least pretending to be, but it was crazy that she saw more of his living room ceiling in videos on the internet than she saw of his face.

  
Tonight, he’d come by after changing clothes at his apartment, and was looking bright and cheerful. He looked happier than she’d seen him since the orchestra experiment fell through. She pulled him in for a hug at the door and didn’t let go for… oh, probably too long, but she was allowed to be embarrassing in her own home. He didn’t complain either way when she pulled away.

  
“Come on in, Istus was just setting the table.”

  
Raven walked ahead, leaving Kravitz to toe off his shoes and hang jacket at the door, well-trained even after living on his own for so long.

  
They’d forgone the dining room tonight, because like most nights, everyone agreed that anything less than five people wasn’t worth the trouble of setting up the nicer room. Istus had the lasagna out on the table already, and was perusing their already-open-but-stoppered wine selection when Raven and Kravitz entered.

  
“Oh hello, Kravitz dear, you were so quiet on the way in!” Istus smiled, pulling him into a hug as well, “You’re looking so well. Is someone feeding you?”

  
“Well, I’m definitely eating!” Kravitz laughed, and Raven shared a look with her wife behind his back, “Eating better, anyway. Dinner smells good, speaking of.”

  
“Pesto lasagna, found the recipe in an old cookbook earlier.” Istus hummed, “We’ll see how edible it is, I suppose, but I’m hopeful.”

  
“We all are,” Raven kissed Istus’s cheek and prodded them toward the wine so she could sit down and eat already. She’d had a long day of visiting groups that wanted her help fundraising, and wanted to think about literally anything else. “If it doesn’t work out,” she started to cut into the lasagna, “we’ll order a pizza.”

  
Kravitz sat with a glass of something red (maybe the Chianti?), and held out his plate for a serving, “I’m sure it’ll be great.”

  
They ate quietly for a little while, with only the telltale sound of someone’s phone vibrating to disturb the silence. As Raven finished up her meal, which had been very tasty because her wife was _very_ good (they needn't have worried), she turned to her son and said, “Sounds like someone’s been trying to get your attention. You know it won’t bother me if you want to talk to your friends, Kravitz.”

  
He looked sheepish. “I’m here to visit with you. I’d hate to be glued to my phone.” It buzzed again, making them both laugh.

  
“Well, we have some time before any of us will be ready for dessert, so maybe you can tell us about whoever’s missing you tonight,” Istus took everyone’s glasses to refill them. Cabernet Sauvignon, Chianti, and a white Sangria.

  
“Ahh, of course. Well, it’s someone you know, mother,” Kravitz looked a little nervous.

  
“Sloane wouldn’t send you so many in a row…” Raven looked at the light fixture above them, drawing on what she thought she knew about Kravitz’s social life, “Not Barry?”

  
“Not Barry,” Kravitz agreed, “Do you remember Barry’s wife, Lup...?”

  
“Taako’s sister?”

  
“Right, okay, well, it’s Taako.”

  
Her eyes darted back down to her son, who looked like he wanted to sink down into his chair and disappear. This was not the behavior of a Kravitz who was just talking to an old friend, this was the look Kravitz might have when being made to spill the beans about a boyfriend. There had not been very many of those, but he'd never been especially open with the details of his love life. Not unless she made him.

  
“Who’s Taako?” Istus reappeared with the glasses, leaning into Raven’s shoulder.

  
Raven wrapped an arm around her wife thoughtfully, “Hm, you’ve been to his bakery. That elf who makes the scones you like.”

  
“He was my friend in school,” Kravitz supplied. “We reconnected a week or so ago.”

  
His phone buzzed another two times.

  
“You should tell him to come over,” Istus said conspiratorially. “There’s plenty of lasagna still, and wine, and I’m sure he’s a delight.”

  
“N-no, I’m sure that won’t be necessary,” her son ducked his head. “I _am_ going to check on these, though…”

  
Raven ran a hand through Istus’s long hair as they both watched her son smile down at his phone. She’d always liked Taako, among her son’s friends. There hadn’t been very many friends Kravitz had wanted to invite over, but in second grade Taako had been the only one who mattered at all. They’d begged and cajoled to try and get sleepovers arranged every weekend, which Raven and Taako’s father had gotten very good at kindly turning down. There were playdates though. Judging by the look on Kravitz’s besotted face, maybe now there were... real dates?

  
They gave him a few minutes, the silence comfortable instead of awkward, before Raven spoke up gently, “No emergencies, I hope?”

  
Kravitz blinked up at her and smiled ruefully, “Luckily not. He’s throwing dinner ideas at me.” The phone vibrated again in his hand, “I’m writing a short song for him, and he wants to cook for me as payment.”

  
“Oh, is that all?” Raven gave him a knowing look, “But it’s _ not _ a date?”

  
Her son narrowly avoided choking on his wine, swallowing it down with a cough, “I, well,” he started.

  
“It’s alright,” Istus cut in kindly, “You really don’t need to tell her everything.” But then she stage-whispered, hand cupped to the side of her mouth, “But you should tell me, your amazing step-mother, all of the details.”

  
“It’s nothing really official yet?” Kravitz offered, crossing and uncrossing his legs, “This dinner thing is, ah, technically a date.”

  
Istus sat up and grinned, “I’m so happy for you! I’ve only seen this Taako a couple of times at his shop, but he was cute and seemed nice.”

  
The phrase _"_ _ seemed nice”   _ had both Raven and Kravitz laughing immediately, because while Taako  _ was _ ultimately a good kid, his attitude toward strangers was almost definitely a big act. Istus was a good judge of character, though, so it was entirely possible that she’d seen through his work-persona to the real thing? Or maybe she could taste kindness in the scones, some nonsense like that.

  
“What’s this about writing him a piece, then?” Raven leaned in, “Or was that supposed to be a cover? You know you don’t have to lie to me, even about things like this.” She wasn’t the strictest parent, but she was sure she’d instilled a good moral code into her son. He’d never disappointed her, not even when he’d disappointed himself.

  
Kravitz shook his head emphatically, either the drink or the ease of the conversation helping to open him up, “No, that was true! He has this, uh… do you know Fantasy Youtube, mother?”

  
She looked to Istus for help, “Is that… the one with the cute birds?”

  
“The bird videos? Yes, dearest. It’s a video website, right Kravitz?”

  
He nodded, “Right. So Taako also makes videos on this website, and they’re about cooking. They’re really brilliant, honestly, but he’s wanting a… a theme song? I’m still figuring it out, but it’s got to be good.”

  
“With you writing it, I’m sure it will be,” Istus put a hand over his.

  
Raven appreciated how well her wife and son got along, endlessly glad that there hadn’t been any hurt feelings over her remarrying. It had been a long courtship, and Istus had been around their home when Kravitz was a teenager, but they’d waited until he was out of school and away at college to get married. Just in case he might  _ want _ time away from them. She needn’t have worried about it, of course, because he’d probably understood Istus’s presence in their home all along... but it was still so nice to see them enjoying each other’s company.

  
She pulled out her own phone (something that she’d _never_ do at the table during one of her parties) and opened the Fantasy Google app with a forceful thumb. Raven still wasn’t a big fan of having a phone with no real buttons to speak of. It felt imprecise, with her long nails making it even clumsier. With care, she managed to type in  _ Taako You Tube Video Cooking Elf _ , and to her delight a thumbnail with Taako’s older, but still recognizable face was the first result. She pressed it and squinted at the tiny video that started playing before remembering that turning the phone to the side would make it bigger.

  
Raven felt Istus come close to watch over her shoulder, and glanced up to see her son knocking back the rest of his refilled wine glass. _No more for him, then,_ unless he was staying the night.

  
“He’s funny, too,” Istus giggled. “Why didn’t you ask him out sooner, Kravitz?”

  
“I...  well. It just felt like something you shouldn’t do, asking out one of your closest friends.” In spite of his embarrassment, Raven noted that he still had a short ear turned to the phone to listen closely. Like he couldn't stand  _not_ listening to the elf's tinny voice coming out of the speaker.

  
“That’s exactly what you’re supposed to do! How else would you know you like the person, if you weren’t their friend first?” Itsus  _ would _ know about that firsthand, from the way they’d come together…

  
“We’ll just have to make up for lost time,” Kravitz said, probably trying to be terse so that they’d change the subject, but sounding maybe a little too loose with wine, too hopeful to pull it off.

  
It had been so long since her boy had even put himself out there that Raven decided  _ (generously) _ to ease up on him for the rest of the evening. She wouldn’t ask any more pointed questions, she’d rescue him from a few of Istus’s… and she was absolutely going to be watching rest of these videos after he was gone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oof, getting into raven's head in this was uhhhhh hard, so this isn't my fave chapter, but i think it's... valuable, in this kind of story, to try and tell a little bit of it from outside. lup is easier, because she's closer to the action, but there'll be a few further away POV characters later... just so it's not only the boys + lup
> 
> (i'm just as excited to get to posting that date as y'all are tbh, ghhhhh  
> i'll try and post up another chapter tomorrow, but this weekend i'll be travelling, so idk about the weekend  
> on the plus side: my mom's at Legato on the SC arc so we'll probably get to finale on our 16 hours of driving! hooray!)
> 
> thank you again for your support <3


	10. Psychic City

It was Magic Day, which used to be a joke Taako would make, that was now a real thing. He had taken the day off from the bakery so that he could spend a day with Angus McDonald without worrying about the clock. Taako wasn’t about to tell the twerp that he was excited to spend time with him, but this was exciting stuff.

  
Magic was dying.

  
Apparently, it hadn’t always been that way. There were a lot of _‘ magical_ _’_ races still in the world, and everyone knew that some gods would bestow abilities or blessings on people… but actual magical ability had been slowly declining for centuries. Now, it was super rare to meet a human with any magic at all, and only slightly more common for elves and dwarves and the like.

  
Growing up, it had been hard to control and understand his and Lup’s abilities, even limited in scope as they were. Merle had had them both in gloves until they were old enough to show some common sense and not burn the house down or turn their bed into taffy. There had been a few minor incidents after the gloves came off, but luckily, Merle had the barest of healing abilities. Enough to soothe their childhood hurts.

  
Angus was different: he hadn’t grown up feeling cursed or dangerous. He hadn’t grown up thinking he was magical at all. Why would he, a normal smart little human boy, be that one in a million human kid with magic tickling under his skin?

  
Taako had known Angus in passing for weeks, and then as a hesitant friend for months, before he’d realized anything was funny. Angus’s magic wasn’t flashy, or really very noticable if you didn’t know it was there already.

  
Angus could Detect Thoughts. There was a reason he was so gifted at detective work -- he was smart, but could also sense people’s intentions sometimes. Not _every_ time, of course, but that was why they were here, doing this.

  
They were setting up a picnic in the park, all handmade foods and cute outfits and everything. It was a nice day out, and Taako couldn’t think of a better time to people-watch.

  
Really, he was going to be people-watching while Angus attempted to people-mind read. They weren’t expecting perfect success rates or anything, but Angus had been so excited to realize that this was a skill he actually possessed, rather than just dumb luck. He was very eager to practice, and very eager in general.

  
Taako nibbled the corner of a triangle sandwich, pointing out a lady in a hat bigger than his, “What’s going on in _that_ noggin, kiddo?”

  
Angus had just taken a huge bite out of his almost-gone sandwich, and turned his attention on the woman in question, staring at her hard. He swallowed and said, “She… thinks we’re weird because we’re both watching her.”

  
“Is that what you know from mind reading powers, or because of that look she’s giving us? C’mon, gimme something juicy, Ango!”

  
“Okay, sir, hm.” Angus relaxed his stare somewhat, then blinked and started giggling.

  
“What?” Taako demanded.

  
“She’s jealous of your hat, sir,” Angus laughed, digging around in the picnic basket for a napkin.

  
Taako adjusted his hat and tilted his chin up, “It’s a great hat.” He and Lup had found it at Fantasy Goodwill years ago, but huge floppy sun hats with pointy tips pretty much always screamed _witch_. He didn’t wear it on the regular anymore, but it was still fun to pull it out on a sunny day.

  
“How about…” Taako turned around slowly, scanning around, and pointed out an elf in a rainbow bowtie, “How about hotdog guy? What’s his story?”

  
He sat back and munched on his sandwich some more, enjoying the look of concentration that Angus had on his face. It was like reverse I-Spy, helping Angus practice. Feeling mildly motivated to try stuff out, too, Taako had a go at turning his juicebox pink. It stubbornly wavered from green to blue, and he set it back down. Magic was hard when you were kind of scared to use it. Luckily, he was already done drinking that, but he probably wouldn’t have trusted the contents of the box.

  
Taako hadn’t had any high profile accidents with his transmutation, and had been good at suppressing it for over a decade. It had always felt dangerous, though. What if he accidentally turned his hair into straw instead of just turning it blonde? What if he tried to turn a skirt into leather and just turned it into like… gross skin? And those were fairly harmless horrible ideas. Taako wouldn’t dare use it in cooking. There was a part of him that yearned to be confident enough to try, but if he turned a grape into a marble, someone would choke.

  
Angus cut into his thoughts aloud, sounding cautious, “Hotdog guy is… a thief? This is probably wrong, sorry, um.”

  
“Go on, pumpkin.”

  
“He kills people and takes their valuables? That can’t be right, sir…”

  
“Ehh, probably not, but that’s why we’re practicing, right? I’ll stay clear of rainbow bowties and hotdogs, though, just to be safe.”

  
Angus gave a nervous giggle, “I’ve never gotten a false positive before, but I guess there’s a first time for everything, huh!”

  
Taako gave him a delicate pat on the back and started to clean up. He was maybe going to have Hurley look into hotdog guy later, on the offhand chance that that had been a real read, but there wasn’t any need to get Angus all scared about it. So far as they could tell, people didn’t actually notice Angus’s skimming over their thoughts. Taako liked to imagine _he_ could feel it, but he knew that this was a fairly subtle magic. It would serve Angus well, if he really did decide to be a detective when he grew up.

  
Angus chattered at Taako excitedly as they walked the distance back to the car, taking the long way around the hotdog stand. Taako listened just enough to be able to give a _yep_ or _uh-huh_ as needed, thinking about how weird it was that he got along with a little kid.

  
When he and Lup had been thrust into the role of older sibling for Mavis, it had been abrupt but not so hard. They weren’t hellions without good cause, by age ten. They’d been reasonably good influences, and it was always fun to play dress up with a baby sister. Mookie being significantly younger had been less easy. Taako wasn’t sure, even now, if he’d really get along with a proper baby. They were gross and loud and demanded all of the attention in the room. Sure, elf babies were super fucking cute, but _at what cost?_ Mookie hadn’t been very endearing or easy to deal with, right away…

  
Angus was different. He was younger than Mookie, which was weird to think about, but very driven. He was a smart and precocious little kid, with a good sense of style. He could keep up in a conversation without hand-holding, and loved to learn. Taako caught himself sometimes thinking about kidnapping the twerp, but it was fine to just be a beloved mentor, probably, yeah.

  
They’d met at the library the first few times, Taako checking out books on video editing and composition and color theory, Angus checking out books way above his grade level. Eventually they started talking and it was maybe weird to be friends with a child, but Taako had spoken with Angus’s grandfather a few times. Turned out, it was weird for Angus to have a friend at all, so it was alright that he was friends with a local psuedo-celebrity.

  
Taako drove the boy home, sending him in with the leftover sandwiches and juice boxes and cookies, and waiting until the door was closed with Angus inside before driving away.

  
The kid was _absolutely_ making him soft, but Taako couldn’t find it in himself to hate that. He was becoming soft in a lot of ways, lately, whether he was a fan of it or not.

  
He’d been texting Kravitz on and off, mostly trying to figure out what he was making for their first… real… date. A scary thing, but every time he got a text back, it warmed his chest and brought an involuntary smile to his face.

  
This time, when he checked his phone after depositing his hat onto a hook and curling up on the sofa, it was not the text from Kravitz that had his heart racing.

_  
Raven Macallister-Fortuna sent you a Friend Request_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [Detect Thoughts](https://roll20.net/compendium/dnd5e/Spells:Detect%20Thoughts#h-Detect%20Thoughts) is a cool spell and I decided that, if Ango was gonna be a magic boy in this limited-magic modern era, something like this was appropriate for him. he's probably just doing the skim-the-surface-intentions thing most of the time tho.
> 
> next chapter is date :0  
> i'll try to uhh... like get it drafted or whatever so i can post it while i'm out of town (gonna draw caricatures at my second-cousin's 70th birthday, oh boy), but if i can't figure that out, it'll probably go up on monday.
> 
> thank you for your support <3 have a nice day and i love you


	11. This Electric Feeling

The townhouse Kravitz drove up to felt very innocuous. There weren’t any super-obvious external signs that this was the home of Taako Highchurch, besides the outer walls being a soft greyish-pink brick instead of a traditional tan or red or green. He double-checked the address before walking up the steps to the little porch, sighting one of Magnus’s simpler rocking chair designs sitting by the door.

  
Kravitz had received a text earlier, giving him permission to just barge right in, but he knocked and paused before opening the door.

  
Inside, he could tell that Taako lived here immediately. The walls were colorful but not painful, the furniture was still mostly Magnus’s work, there were so many shoes at the door. They weren’t organized in any meaningful way, and Kravitz had to stop himself from stooping down to fix that.

  
“Taako?” he called out from the entryway, not sure if he should proceed in or wait to be greeted.

  
“C’mon back, Krav! I got some work for you.” And there it was, music to his ears. Taako to his ears?

  
He removed the jacket he’d had on for the breeze and folded it over an arm, wandering back into the living space. There was a cozy living room with a couple of couches, a plush armchair and a coffee table. Very normal. The decorations were very Taako, but either he’d grown up enough to realize that one big mattress on the floor wasn’t ideal furniture, or someone else had and had talked him into this.

  
“What’cha doing? Put that down and come over here,” Taako said, standing in the open doorway to the kitchen with a head of lettuce in hand.

  
Kravitz draped his jacket over the back of a couch and rolled up his sleeves, following Taako into the kitchen. “Nice setup you’ve got here,” he commented, eyes drawn up to the mysterious kitchen gadgets lining the tops of Taako’s cabinets. You couldn’t see those in the videos, but he felt like he knew the rest of this room by heart, despite never being here.

  
“Less standing around, more chopping,” Taako groused, but when Kravitz turned to him, the elf was fighting a smile. Kravitz accepted the wet lettuce with open arms, feeling like yes, he could probably handle this. He’d done it a couple of times cooking along to Taako’s videos.

  
“Aye-aye,” he said, moving to the cleared spot that Taako had clearly set up for him. This cutting board and knife were still clean, whereas the ones Taako was working on had… a lot going on. He turned to his work and did a pretty good job, with minimal correction from the expert, as he chopped lettuce, dicing tomatoes and onions.

  
“We’ll make a chef of you, yet,” Taako teased, leaning in close to inspect Kravitz’s handywork. “Yep! This is great, good job bubala. What kinda sauce do you want on your stuff? I’ve got a good roasted tomatillo one open in the fridge,” the elf’s eyes went upward as he thought about what he already had.

  
Kravitz decided to save them both from a sauce-making detour, “That sounds fine. I don’t know what I like,” he confessed, “but if you like it, I’m sure it’s good.”

  
“Flattery will get you  _ everywhere,”  _ Taako winked, going to pull out the unlabelled bottle from the fridge. He fussed with the tortilla warmer and pulled out other things he’d clearly gotten ready earlier (guacamole, sour cream, cheese). Some of these Kravitz hoped had just been store bought. The idea that Taako had been working on this dinner for him all day without help was overwhelming and maybe sad? Though it’d probably take the elf a fraction of the time it’d take Kravitz.

  
“So how do I assemble this?” Kravitz took the plate with a tortilla set on it when Taako offered it, “Are there any rules?”

  
“Nobody’s gonna come arrest you if you make a bad taco,” Taako laughed, “This is a date, but like, we’re in my house, just eat how you wanna eat, my man.”

  
Kravitz still insisted that Taako make up his food first, so he could watch and copy. He followed him over to the table and started to take a seat, “Something to drink? I could figure out water, probably.” Kravitz thought he knew where the glasses might be, at any rate.

  
“Oh! Right, I made some virgin margaritas,” Taako hopped up to pull a pitcher out of the fridge door. Kravitz wondered what went into a ‘virgin’ margarita besides the margarita mix. Maybe just water, or something with a little kick like ginger ale? He’d trust Taako’s taste in food no matter what it was, though, so he was game to try it.

  
In the days preceding this date, they’d done a lot of discussing the menu for the meal. Taako didn’t want to make anything Kravitz might have already seen in a video, and he’d wanted to give Kravitz input on what it was going to be. Kravitz, for his part, would’ve happily eaten a better version of any of those meals, and only requested that there be some kind of dessert for this dinner. Taako’d teased him about his sweet tooth a bit before acquiescing, but they still went back and forth on what food they’d be making together.

  
Something they _hadn’t_ discussed was the alcohol.

  
Kravitz decided not to comment on it, but he thought the choice to make these margaritas sans-tequila-and-triple-sec was an interesting one. Maybe Taako was trying out something new? Or maybe he just knew that they’d both jump at the chance to lower their inhibitions with a drink. They were both pretty inclined to drink wine, he’d learned, but they’d never shared a drink before. Maybe that was third or fourth date kind of stuff? Kravitz wasn’t complaining about it, not just yet, he just wondered.

  
“Here you are,” Taako deposited a salt-rimmed glass in front of each of them, untying his apron and opting for a napkin over his lap instead.

  
Kravitz sipped at the (tasty! What a surprise) drink as he took in Taako’s outfit. He wore a skirt, this one a little higher than he’d had on at the coffee shop before, and it made Kravitz’s mouth dry when he thought at all about why he liked it. The blouse that with it was maybe just a step above a fitted t-shirt, v-necked and three-quarters-length sleeves. It looked soft and not especially flouncy. Kravitz realized why (less places in the shirt for food to hide) when he took a bite from his taco and two little tomato cubes fell out of the back.

  
Wow.  _ Wow. _

  
It was so good? Kravitz couldn’t stop the delighted noise that came out as he chewed, digging into the rest of the meal noisily. He did not notice Taako squirming in his seat when he picked up the second taco, remembering that maybe he should slow down and not eat like an animal. But it was so good? He groaned happily and mumbled something that was supposed to be  _ this is so good, Taako  _ but came out more like, “‘S  _ oh good _ taco.”

  
Taako snorted into his cup before laughing, “A-a ringing endorsement, from the man himself!” He sounded a little shaky. Kravitz took a fork and started scooping up fallen filling from his plate, single-mindedly making sure that he ate every last tasty bit.

  
This was what he’d been missing, eating on his own. He had no sense of what extra ingredients you needed to round out a flavor. Taako was a genius, even if maybe this was a pretty simple dish.

  
“No, really, you’re amazing at this. At cooking. You know that, I know you do, but, just,” Kravitz enjoyed the red color that was rapidly taking over the elf’s ears, “I’m so proud of you?”

  
Taako ducked his head, “I guess I’m glad you’re like this instead of like... a super picky eater, but dang, Krav.”

  
“It’s true! I remember ground zero! That sweet old elf lady who taught home ec was all you could talk about in the cafeteria that year. You wanted her to adopt you.” Kravitz smiled, “It was cute, but some of that stuff you’d bring for us to try was… well.”

  
“It was bad,” Taako laughed. “Guess that’s how learning works. Didn’t some cartoon dog go like... You gotta suck at stuff before you’re good at it?”

  
“We still suck at flirting, for instance,” Kravitz grinned, “Maybe one day we’ll be good.”

  
“Speak for yourself, I’m great.” Taako reached over to pat Kravitz’s shoulder, as if to console him, “You’ll get there, handsome.”

  
Kravitz took another sip of his drink and stood up, considering a second serving. A shadow in Taako’s lap caught his eye as Taako very  _ very _ quickly scooted up flush with the table. _Oh?_ He deliberated for a second, and decided not to point out the mild tenting he  _ thought _   he might have seen, and went to make himself another taco.

  
The first date was  _ maybe _ a little fast for a kiss, but gods knew it was definitely too fast for… that. What had he done to get Taako hot and-or bothered in the first place? Kravitz wanted to know what it’d been. For reasons.

  
When he sat back down, Taako’s shouldered were hunched, defensive, but Kravitz gave him a gentle smile and watched Taako relax a little. They chatted about things, about the jingle and another orchestra practice, about the bakery and how the mug cake video was shaping up. The tension loosened and lessened and it was nice to feel at ease without needing alcohol to grease the wheels. They went through the pitcher of mocktail margarita and had a sweet egg flan for dessert.

  
It was a lovely evening, and Taako’s skirt  _ situation _ had calmed down by the time they were cleaning up the dishes. Kravitz offered to clean them solo, but Taako insisted that they’d both cooked, so they could both clean. He suspected that it was also an excuse to stand very close to each other at the sink.

  
Kravitz had his sleeves rolled up again as he rinsed off plates and cups, handing them over to Taako to load into the dishwasher in  _ his _ preferred way. Everyone did that differently. Kravitz was commenting on how weird that was when Taako hip-checked him away from the sink and turned the water off.

  
“This was great,” he started, and then chewed his lip. Kravitz’s eyes were drawn there as Taako found his words. “Um, again, feel free to stop me if I’m coming on too strong, but I’m feeling like… I dunno, maybe there wasn’t enough, uh, flirting? In this date?”

  
“Oh? But I’m ‘ _ bad at it _ ,’” Kravitz tilted his head, still watching Taako’s face intently.

  
“I guess what I’m saying is, like, if our dates are maybe just gonna be... like _this_ …” and Kravitz couldn’t help the way his heart sank at the way that sentence started. Luckily, it ended with, “That maybe the coffee thing  _ was _ actually a date, and  _ this _ should be the second date.”

  
“Weird way of thinking about it,” Kravitz commented idly, distracted, his heart all confused and pounding.

  
“Anyway can I kiss you? It’s our second date, officially, as of right now, and so like… ugh, gods, sorry, just,” and then Kravitz was leaning down to kiss him. This was stupid. They were so stupid.

  
Taako made a soft noise of shock against his lips and had water-cooled hands on Kravitz's face and Kravitz couldn’t help smiling into the kiss. His arms found a place to rest on Taako’s hips as they pulled away from this gentle first thing, and Taako was grinning at him before tugging his face back in for something a little less gentle. But after a few minutes of enthusiastic back-and-forth, and they were lovely minutes that Kravitz was going to be thinking about for days, he rested his forehead against Taako’s and hummed.

  
“You’re really good at that,” Kravitz said, surprised at how easy this was. Maybe it wouldn’t have been so easy before, and you had to endure a few years of solitude and heartbreak before you got to find somebody that it was easy to be around. Or maybe they could’ve been doing this for years? It didn’t do to get all maudlin about that now, though.

  
Taako’s ears flicked, and he got a mischievous look on his face, pressing a kiss to the corner of Kravitz’s mouth, “So... I’m better than Barry?”

_  
Aaand _ the moment was gone, he was dating an asshole. A really cute and sweet one, but a total ass, “W-who told you about that? Barry wouldn’t.”

  
“Barry didn’t tell me, as such,” Taako giggled. “Y’all were so cute, babe. I’m not judging, just teasing.”

  
Kravitz found himself grumbling and smiling at the same time, too happy to be mad, just enjoying holding and being held for a moment, in this kitchen that he’d seen dozens of times but only stood in once.

  
“I  _ should _ go,” Kravitz said reluctantly, remembering that he did have an early shift in the morning. If he remembered right, Taako did, too. The price they’d paid to have time for this dinner. With any luck, they’d hire another hand or two at Wave Echo and he wouldn’t have to be so busy and bored there.

  
“Nooo,” Taako fussed, leaning onto his chest and pulling Kravitz into a soft little sway, “We were just getting to the good part.”

  
“The part where you make me remember that I kissed _Barry Bluejeans_   with my own mouth, once?”

  
“Yes. Wait. No.”

  
“Hey. We’ll do this again.” He played with Taako’s bangs, his hand cupping Taako’s face in a way he’d never been allowed to before. “Maybe we can dress up and go somewhere for the next one?”

  
“Mmm, food won’t be as good as my stuff. But maybe I could be convinced.” Taako sniffed and pulled away, probably feeling at least as reluctant as Kravitz, “We could coordinate outfits… do you still have that red tie?”

  
“From  _ prom?? _ ”

  
“That's the one! I’ve got something that goes with it perfectly! Okay, now I’m into this,” Taako walked backward toward the door, leading the way like Kravitz might get lost, “You gotta do eyeliner, too. I know you have some.”

  
“Guilty,” Kravitz chuckled, slipping back into his shoes. Taako reached up and pulled him into another slow and deep kiss at the door. Something to be thinking about when he got home, for sure. They parted again, watching each other for a second. Kravitz smiled first, “I think I can manage that, for you.”

  
Taako opened the door for him and stood on the porch waving while Kravitz drove away, wishing that he could just call in tomorrow and stay the night. Even just making out on the couch all night would be okay, he could be good with that… but not tonight.

  
Kravitz realized, when he got home and started to put his jacket away, that he didn’t actually have it. He’d left it on the couch.

  
It didn’t have his wallet or phone in it or anything, but it was a nice jacket. That probably belonged to Taako now.

  
Kravitz decided, as he put his shoes away, that he really didn’t mind.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> longer chapter for these good good, dumb boys
> 
> taako plans get DONE, hoo boy  
> speaking of taako plans, next chapter's gonna be Actual Rated M so be ready. or wary. be aware. get hype?? i'm hype.
> 
> i havent actually made those [virgin margaritas](https://www.thepinningmama.com/virgin-margarita-recipe/%0A) but everyone in the mom website i got them off of said they were great. its mostly juice so like. of course it's good.
> 
> thank y'all for joining me on this thing, and just know that like... the little notifications i get about this are brightening my day so much. i really appreciate the support. hoping you have a great day! :)


	12. Rest My Chemistry

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stuff gets a little wet and wild, like a little M-rated in this one, y'all.
> 
> Skip down after like the first paragraph, down to "Taako was twenty-eight years old," if you don't wanna read that.

Taako waved until the car was gone, and then fled inside, throwing himself face-first onto his bed and kicking his legs excitedly. He’d done a kiss! They’d done that! Kravitz had been totally into it and it had felt really nice and -- oh gods.

 

He hugged a pillow to his chest as he rolled over, glaring at his flimsy skirt like it had wronged him. And it had. If he’d been wearing tighter pants, or like… denim (ew), his embarrassing dumb boner wouldn’t have been half as obvious. Taako was ninety-percent sure that Kravitz had seen the evidence of how easy and excited Taako had been, just hearing Krav moan about a literal fuckin’ taco.

 

But it had been _such_ a good noise… he hadn’t had a lot of time to process it in the moment, but Taako wanted to hear it again. Just getting to make out with Kravitz, be held close enough to taste his breath, apparently wasn’t enough. He wanted to feel Kravitz’s hands on more than just his waist, Taako wanted to slide his hands up the back of his shirt. He wanted to hear that sound again as Kravitz came undone from just his mouth.

 

Taako chewed at the edge of a thumbnail, glancing downward again and giving a put-upon sigh to the room at large. He set the pillow aside for its own safety, reaching down to palm at the erection that was once again making a tent of his skirt. This particular skirt was going into retirement at the back of the closet _(unless_ it turned out that Kravitz liked it).

 

The fantasies that he’d been thinking of for a decade were pushed aside with this new material: real Kravitz. His real shirt sleeves rolled up to show his forearms, his real broad shoulders and broad hands, his real warm tongue in Taako’s mouth. His real teeth tugging on Taako’s lip. Maybe that one was still fantasy, but Taako had _big_ plans.

 

He shucked off the offending skirt and had a hand in his briefs immediately. He’d often opt for panties, but Taako wasn’t all the way sure that Kravitz would be into that. He was barely sure about the skirts, honestly, but like… on the offhand chance that skirt had come off earlier, in Kravitz’s hands instead of Taako’s, he wouldn’t have wanted to scare the boy off with something lacy and pink.

 

He imagined what it might be like if Kravitz _was_ into the panties though, if he’d lick them while Taako was still wearing them, get him off with just the thin wet cloth separating them. He groaned and fumbled a hand into his nightstand for lube, pulling off the decidedly less cute briefs and wrapping a slick hand around himself. It wouldn’t take long, after getting himself worked up like this.

 

Taako was twenty-eight years old and had only had a few boyfriends worth even half a damn, and even they hadn’t been great at getting him off the way he wanted. Sazed had found him in culinary school and made him feel special, but only long enough to get what he wanted out of Taako. Every now and then he’d remember that fucker and want to scream. Brian had had an even better facade of caring, but was ultimately not generous in any way. Brad was _too_ generous, in a way that had made Taako feel uncomfortable. Regardless, Taako knew how to take care of himself, in more ways than one.

 

Maybe that was the real reason he was scared, he thought after, spent and panting and lying pantless on the top of his sheets. Kravitz might treat him just the same way. Act like he was something really special, something to be cherished, and then take advantage of his desire to be taken care of. Use Taako thoroughly, until there wasn’t anything good left in his life.

 

He shook his head and sat up, because he needed to make sure he didn’t fall asleep with all the lights on and come drying on his belly and hand.

 

No, Kravitz wouldn’t do that to him. He knew Kravitz. This was the sweet boy who hadn’t argued when Taako and his sister had wanted to be the Pink and Red Fantasy Power Rangers, respectively, in fifth grade. This was the Kravitz who had argued Taako’s case to the principal when Taako had made the music teacher cry in middle school. This was the Kravitz who had suffered through Taako’s terrible beginning baking experiments in high school. This was the Kravitz who clearly liked him, but had wanted to take it slow to start, instead of just immediately hooking up with Taako.

 

He turned on the shower and pulled off his shirt, waiting for the water to warm up.

 

It wasn’t that he had nothing to be scared of. Of course he should be scared. He’d never had a good relationship with a boyfriend in his life. He’d had friends and family be more or less supportive, but after moving out of Merle’s house, and then moving out of the apartment he and Lup had shared, his support always came from outside. Nobody got in, and nobody supported him from Home.

 

And that was alright: Taako knew how to take care of himself, after all. He’d made himself presentable when it came time to woo investors, he’d written a script and actually stuck to it. He’d learned a whole new skill mostly on his own in order to expand his brand. He’d made at least one (1) new friend on his own since moving out, even if that friend was a child. He’d figured out how to conduct an interview so he could hire help and save himself from burnout.

 

He didn’t actually _need_ anybody to show up and save him from himself or anything.

 

He just wanted to not be so alone inside his own head.

 

Taako always just had this voice in there that’d tell him to do something useful. That he wasn’t allowed to enjoy sleeping in, because he could be working on something, anything. He’d get home and not realize he hadn’t eaten, because he’d be so busy with bullshit. And he was living, for sure. Being ultra-busy and ultra-productive was doing wonders for his businesses.

 

But Kravitz made time slow down, made it even go backwards sometimes. His presence was both a calming force and a motivating one. He made Taako want to do good things, be a better person. If Taako was being honest with himself, (and really, in the shower is probably the time he’s most honest with himself,) he’d been motivated to do good for years this way. Kravitz, and yes, for sure, also Lup, hadn’t let those angsty middle school tendencies get the better of Taako back then. They’d forced him to shape his worldview into something a little less cynical. Sure, sure, he was still kind of a dick, but like. He liked to think that he was maybe a good person, in spite of that.

 

He frowned at the glass door of the shower, which he’d had a hand on, which was now pink. Whoops. Maybe he really did need to give his meager magic a little more attention. It seemed like such an inconsequential thing, until it was changing his shit on its own.

 

The shower had cleared his head enough that Taako felt confident that he’d actually be able to sleep and get up for work at Fuck-Off-o’Clock in the morning.

 

He turned off the various lights in his house and remembered to lock the front door before heading back to bed with his phone in hand. He was ready for sleep, but also ready for warm fuzzies. Kravitz was really good at inspiring those when prompted.

 

22:45  
Taako: _hey krav im goin to bed because work etc etc u know_

 

Taako: _just wanted to let you know i had fun tonight_

 

Taako: _maybe in more ways than one? hmm wink_

 

Kravitz: _Do I want to know?_

 

Taako: _oh....._ _...you know. ;)_

 

Kravitz: _I’ll have to ruminate on that super mysterious mystery, I guess. I had a lot of fun, too._

 

Kravitz: _I never got around to saying it, because maybe you didn’t deserve the praise at the time, but I’ve had some time to think._

 

Taako: _praise?? omg lay it on me hot stuff_

 

Kravitz: _This was definitely the answer to all of the questions that are on your mind…_

 

Kravitz _: The thing we were all dying to know..._

 

Kravitz: _You ARE a way better kisser than Barry J. Bluejeans, as it turns out._

 

Taako: _P L E A S E_

 

Taako: _thanks i actually did need that to sleep tonite_

 

Taako: _imagine if youd been like… nah taako i think im gonna go break up ur sisters marriage_

 

Taako: _lol anyway nightnight krav <3 _

 

Kravitz: _Goodnight, Taako. Sleep well. Talk to you tomorrow._

 

Taako rolled over to plug his phone in and wondered why he’d taken so long to get here.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The future is so cool lol. I forgot google docs is totally accessable from my phone so here's this thing early/on time/whatever. The only time the author note will have capitalization, because I'm too lazy to decaps it for aesthetic.
> 
> All you missed, if you skipped that stuff, was like... Taako being real eager about being physical, going forward, but also not wanting to scare Krav off with weird stuff. Idk how easy it's gonna be too just skip around smut in future chapters tbh, but I'll do my best to be accommodating. I know that's not everyone's favorite thing.
> 
> (Finally back to the finale on my mom's first listen (my third go around) and oooh boy, my sister went "what if lups in the umbrella, how could they get her out??" and I couldn't say anything. Horrible!!)
> 
> I'm alive for these lovely comments, guys. They'll sustain me as I indulge in such mortal vices as Drive Thru Frozen Daiquiris. Louisiana is buck wild. Don't drink and drive like DUH, but damn son...  
> (update since I wrote most of this note: my family brought me ~6 drinks and zero food while I was drawing caricatures at that party. I feel death in this bayou tonight)
> 
> Have a good time doin' what you do, and also I love u.


	13. All Dolled Up in Straps

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Still kinda M in this one. More tame tho. Starts with Taako's texts at 17:45, ends at the 18:17 timestamp.

That night had Kravitz sleeping hard and fast, waking up well rested with visions of flirty skirts and Taako’s kissed face. He stretched and showered and felt like a new man, even though it was early to be thinking of this as a proper relationship, he still felt secure in it. Grounded in something exciting.

 

He got ready for work and remembered that Taako would’ve already been up to open the bakery. When Taako was closing, Kravitz usually wouldn’t hear from him until at least lunchtime. Probably that meant he was waking up late, but Kravitz wasn’t sure.

 

07:20

Kravitz: _Good morning. Can I stop by the bakery before work?_

 

He wasn’t aiming for makeouts at the bakery (not just yet), he just knew he wanted to see the elf with his own eyes if he could before wasting away the rest of the day for a paycheck.

 

Taako: _hmm im not dressed up_

 

Taako: _not sure if ur allowed to see me like this hmm hmm_

 

Kravitz: _That’s the worst excuse I’ve ever heard, you’d look lovely in rags._

 

Taako: _hell yeah i would_

 

Taako: _ok you passed the test come by for a good morning kiss_

 

Taako: _there might be a reward depending on your performance ;)_

 

Taako: _(like a muffin dont get too excited)_

 

And just like that, his day was going to be amazing.

 

\----

 

“You’ve something on your shirt,” said June, when she came in to work after school.

 

Kravitz had been playing a game on his phone and hastily crammed it back into his pocket. The teen didn’t seem all that interested in his dirty shirt as she went to the backroom to put away her backpack and change into a uniform. This was why, of the shitty teenagers that worked at Wave Echo Music, June was the one he liked best. She kept to herself mostly, and when she did chat with him or Brodie or anybody, she was smart and kind. Maybe undeserving of being called a “shitty teenager,” even.

 

They weren’t best friends or anything, though. She’d only started working a few months back.

 

He checked his shirt and realized that he had either flour or powdered sugar on his collar. Probably flour, from Taako’s hands as he pulled Kravitz behind the front counter for more making out than either of them had actually had time for. The sound of an oven beeping in the back had forced them both to get back to work, but not before Taako’d shoved a fresh muffin into Kravitz’s hand. (“ _For those good kisses. You know? The good ones. Wink._ ”)

 

Now he brushed at the flour half-heartedly, since he’d had it like that for hours and nobody’d mentioned it. It wasn’t going to come all the way off, regardless, and he was leaving in an hour. So it wasn’t going to matter.

 

June returned from the back room, pulling her hair from the collar of her shirt and joining Kravitz by the register. “Been busy?” she asked.

 

“Hmm, as busy as ever,” which was to say, not at all. It was a wonder that Gundren justified keeping him here for such long hours. Kravitz was the only one here with any expanded knowledge of instruments, and was working for barely more than the teens, so it made some sense that he was scheduled almost every day.

 

“You can go if you want. Look like you’ve got somethin’ on your mind.” June shrugged when Kravitz glanced at her, “No judgement. ‘Sides, you’re always workin’ way harder than the rest of us. You’d only be out an hour early.”

 

Kravitz weighed his hourly wage against his desire to be away from the blaring music and dark sparkly floors of the shop, and landed firmly on wanting to go home.

 

“Thanks, June. I’ll sign out and head home,” he smiled, heading to the backroom to clock out. When Kravitz returned, he paused at the counter, “You’re a lifesaver.”

 

“Yeah, yeah. Your head’s in the clouds lately, anyways.” She waved him off with a smile.

 

\----

 

17:22

Kravitz: _When were you supposed to get off, again?_

 

Taako: _get off???? ;) ;) ;)_

 

Kravitz: _...of work._

 

Taako: _i know lol. i got home a few hrs ago_

 

Kravitz: _I’m gonna work on your jingle thing, I think. Do you want a bunch of iterations at once, or for me to send them as I go?_

 

Taako: _considering how short they are a batch is fine <3 _

 

Taako: _feel free to text me while ur working tho_

 

Kravitz: _I won’t get anything done, like that._

 

Taako: _you say that, but theres some rad stuff we could be doing over texts WINK WINK WINK_

 

Kravitz: _Not very subtle… and if I wasn’t good at flirting, what makes you think I’d be good at sexting??_

 

Taako: _its good to pick up new skills babe_

 

Taako: _can i just text u then, while you work?_

 

Kravitz: _Acceptable._

 

He pulled up the relevant files, and programs and started messing around with settings, saving any combinations of the Flash Sparkle sting that sounded interesting. Once he had 02-09 zipped up and ready to send, he checked his phone again for the flood of messages he’d undoubtedly gotten while absorbed in sound editing.

 

17:45

Taako: _ok so my plan was and is to just start sexting at u and see if you give up and call me_

 

Taako: _that might be a bit much for u since this is ur first time but hey_

 

Taako: _open your mind to new experiences and stuff etc etc_

 

Taako: _first of all im wearing just leggings and a tunic top and its all kinda thin and stretchy_

 

Taako: _and under that im not wearing any underwear or anything tbh but im already thinkin about taking some pics for u in panties_

 

Taako: _are you into that? hmm_

 

At this point, Kravitz had a hand on his fly without even having thought about it. He’d been supremely skeptical of sexting as an institution, because how could it be better than just calling someone? He didn’t really understand phone sex either, to be fair, but it had sounded more plausible than just sending someone sexy texts and hoping it got them off. This was probably supposed to be a two-way street, but he was still twenty minutes back in Taako’s texts.

 

17:51

Taako: _i really hope youre ok with the skirts and panties and stuff because honestly theyre so important but also theyre really hot?_

 

Taako: _like you can leave a skirt on and still do stuff. u can even leave panties on and still do stuff_

 

Taako: _i know it would be too fast to ask u to do that stuff to me but last night i thought about it after you left and like_

 

Taako: _your lips on mine feel so right, i can only imagine what they’d feel like around my cock_

 

There was a part of him that just wanted to start answering all of this immediately, but he needed to get to the end to know what Taako was saying _now_ and Kravitz wasn’t going to skip anything. He’d undone his pants and pulled himself out with only a little shame. This wouldn’t be the first action his computer desk had seen, unfortunately.

 

18:02

Taako: _fuck this im gonna take a sexy pic for u_

 

Taako: _i cannot BELIEVE u havent cracked and said anything yet_

 

Taako: _like if its too much pls tell me to shut up i might actually listen_

 

Taako: _im imagining your handsome face getting all toasty warm and flustered thinking about how i want u to suck me off and boy howdy its great_

 

Taako: _here is a pic ;) save it if u wanna_

 

It was absolutely taken by Taako with a selfie stick, with an arm stretched toward the camera. Taako was laid out on his bed, the sheets all rumpled around him, and now instead of leggings and a tunic, it was stockings and panties and a rucked-up tunic. His hair was a mess, and the head of his dick was peeking out of the top of the low-riding lace. Kravitz one-hundred percent now understood the appeal of this form of intimacy, scrolling reluctantly down as he spread precome across the head of his dick.

 

18:09

Taako: _holy shit i just remembered how much this is that im saying and i sure hope ur into it lol_

 

Taako: _if not please delete everything and wipe this from your memory_

 

Taako: _but hey idk about u but like hey im really into what weve got going on and also_

 

Taako: _im rlly excited_

 

Taako: _about us?? maybe too excited l o l_

 

And the messages were over, and Kravitz typed out with his unoccupied hand something a little less frantic than he’d been expecting to write.

 

18:11

Kravitz: _I’m really excited about us, too._

 

Kravitz: _Just a minute._

 

Taako: _omg are u getting off… i want pics too :0 !!_

 

Taako: _dont leave me hangin krav :0 :0 :0_

 

He wiped up the mess and washed his hands before getting back to Taako.

 

18:17

Kravitz: _I can neither confirm nor deny._

 

Taako: _did u save the pic tho_

 

Kravitz: _...yes._

 

Taako: _so skirts and stuff are good with you ? <3 _

 

Kravitz: _……yes._

 

Taako: _sweet_

 

Somehow after that, they devolved into more the usual chatter, with only minimal over-the-top flirting.

 

Kravitz decided, once Taako had gone to bed in preparation for another early shift, that he should write a new song for himself, too. It didn’t have to be about himself, of course, but he felt so different lately. It’d be a shame not to take advantage of his inspired and positive mood.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What u missed if u skipped lewd: Taako sent a pic. Actually I guess I managed to not hide any plot in the middle of that one, lmao
> 
> Sad but true: I told myself I was "editing," but really I just spent several hours yesterday reading the shit that I'll be posting in the next few weeks.
> 
> I'm really hype to like.. go home and write more. Not so hype about driving again lol, oh well.
> 
> Thank you again for your support!!! Posting every day is so fuckin satisfying, I'm glad to hear that people aren't sick of this yet, lol. Even if I only wrote every other day, I think the math still holds that I could post every day until it's all done... Y'all will be the first to know if I decide to slow down, tho
> 
> See y'all assumedly tomorrow?? Have a lovely day, I love you.


	14. Lipslap

The salon was thankfully pretty empty when Lup pushed the door in and held it for her brother. It was the weekend, so she had a few hours to spare, and Taako was being hands-off at the bakery today (Ren insisted, since she and Joaquin get days off, that he take them more often, too).   
  


She signed herself in on a little pad of paper, ticking both the gel-manicure box and the medium-tier pedicure box with the provided fake flower pen. At the bottom is a whole line of boxes for drinks, and she dutifully selected a mimosa instead of something heavier. She was going to drive them home, afterward, so this would be her only drink.   
  


Taako picked the most extravagant pedicure package and nothing for his hands, so they’ll only be able to chat together for a bit. Lup knew something was up with him, but this didn’t seem like an attempt at being scarce or anything. She wanted those hot deets, but was relatively willing to ease up. Her brother hadn’t dated anybody  _ good  _ for him in ages, and the details about those bad dates had definitely required alcohol to get out of him.   
  


They played with the pinwheel-spread of plastic nails of fantasy shellac colors, Taako helping her pick out a pretty shade of red-orange, and turned to the wall of regular polishes to figure out their toes.   
  


“I’m feelin’... kinda purple?” Taako said, like he wasn’t sold on the idea. “Maybe I’ll go red, too.”   
  


“Hmm,” Lup inspected the red polish in his hand, “Nope, no way, that one doesn’t suit you.”   
  


“But it suits  _ you?”  _ The reminder that they were identical twins went unspoken, since that was the joke.   
  


“Absolutely,” she compared the two shades of in her hand and decided that they were close enough to look coordinated. Not that Barry was ever going to notice that her fingers and toes matched.    
  


(He was always complimenting her and how she looked and how smart she was, but it was rare for him to put much thought into something like nail polish. Sometimes they’d be into something hot and heavy and he’d realize twenty minutes in that her bra and underwear matched, but just blurt, _“Nice,”_ and move on.)  It was cool to know that there wasn’t any extra pressure to make herself up for him (though sometimes she wished he’d appreciate it better when she did).  
  


“What’s Kravitz’s favorite color?” Taako asked, like she’d know anything about that, as he loitered by the dark colors. He was wearing a vivid yellow top, and looked totally out of place next to the maroons and indigos and blacks.   
  


Lup hummed, “He was a spooky goth before… he’s still kinda one, now. Can’t go wrong with black.” She laughed a little before thinking aloud, “So you’re thinking he’ll notice your toes sometime soon?”   
  


“He’d see ‘em if I wore sandals.”   
  


“It’s still kinda cold out, bud,” she pointed out.   
  


Taako’s ears flicked, “Look, maybe I just want them to look good on the offhand chance he’s looking at my feet.”   
  


“Hmm.” She noticed him put back a sparkly black polish and pick up one that was more iridescent. Still dark, but shining purple and blue as it hit the light. Lup nodded when he glanced at her for approval.   
  


They were led over to the fancy massage-and-foot-tub chairs and their drinks were already in the cupholders. The benefits of the place not being so busy today, maybe. She noticed that Taako was going for whatever red wine was on offer and was glad she’d already resigned herself to the one mimosa.   
  


“So things are going well?” She asked as they soaked, “You didn’t scare him off or anything?”   
  


“Fuck you,” Taako said, without any heat, “You were right about him being nice.”   
  


“Nice enough to put up with your bullshit?” She played with the massage settings on the chair.   
  


“He always was nice enough for that,” Taako smiled, entirely defused. No bite, despite the arguing.   
  


Lup scanned the periphery to make sure none of the nice nail techs were coming over right away, “But how did it  _ go _ , Koko?”   
  


“Mm,” he said, without the shrug that would usually accompany the noise. She inclined her head toward him encouragingly. After an overlong moment he said, “Well. He said I’m a better kisser than Barry, so. Condolences, I guess.”   
  


Lup squawked, “You kissed him already! What happened to being all coy and scared and shit, bro? Damn.”   
  


“Not everyone is suited to that real-long slow burn, sis. Sometimes y’just got needs, and also sometimes you were already kinda slow-burning for like a decade.” He sipped at his drink, like this wasn’t a huge deal. It  _ was _ a huge deal!    
  


She’d had a bet going with Barry and Hurley and Magnus and like... Everyone. She was totally going to lose her bet. _ Maybe _ , Lup thought wildly, Taako wouldn’t tell anybody else about this right away. She’d been so sure that they’d take like… at least two months to get it together. Damn.   
  


Somebody came over to scrub her feet to hell and back and it felt great, but she wasn’t enjoying it fully. Lup didn’t really, in her heart of hearts, want to sabotage her brother’s relationship. But there was a not insignificant part of her that was vying for just that, solely so that she could look like she won a bet.   
  


“...Lulu? Lup?” she blinked and looked at Taako, whose ears were swiveled her way in concern.   
  


“Yeah?”   
  


“You just spaced out or whatever. Anyway, it was just kissing. And maybe texting.”   
  


“There was already texting before,” Lup flicked at the straw in her drink.   
  


“Well, yeah, but not that kinda texting.”   
  


She threw a disgusted look his way and Taako just cackled. If she wasn’t having lotion massaged (kinda violently?) into her calves, she’d be kicking him.   
  


“Gross. And also, what! Last week you were freaking out about a date! What the hell!”   
  


“Mmm, mostly one-sided, tee-bee-aych, but he was deffo into it.”   
  


“Is this revenge?” For all those times she overshared about Barry, specifically. There were lots of things Taako could probably bring up in retaliation, from all of the general teasing and bickering and gossiping in their twenty-eight years of life.   
  


“Babe, it’s  _ something _ ,” Taako grinned. Lup was agitated, but that was so surface-level. Her brother looked so pleased with himself, and not just for messing with her. She couldn’t find it in herself to be that mad.   
  


The door to the salon opened, drawing their attention that way.   
  


Lucretia walked in.   
  


Taako’s smiles shut down some, but Lup saw him wave politely (and knew then that he really  _ was  _ in a good mood). Lup’s wave was much more enthusiastic, to the dismay of the patient dwarf painting her toenails.   
  


After signing in, Lucretia came over with poorly masked discomfort. Lup did most of the chatting.   
  


She wasn’t  _ really  _ sure what’d gone down, exactly, between her brother and their friend. She had some ideas about it, though. All she knew for sure was that they’d had probably five years of pretending they didn’t see each other at get togethers. When a half-elf called Lucretia to the other side of the room, it was a mild relief, but then it was Lup’s turn to move away from the foot bath and get her fingers done. Interrogation over by default, as Taako got the rest of his deluxe package and a refill of his glass.

 

 

* * *

 

 

In the car, a little while later, Lup piped up at a red light, “You’re really into him, huh?”   
  


“Don’t act like you didn’t already know that,” Taako was smiling at his phone.   
  


“Mm, but like, I saw him eat a bug in second grade, though.” She accelerated through the green light after a brief pause to make sure somebody wasn’t going to run the red in the other direction.   
  


Taako wrinkled his nose at her, “ _ You _ dared him to do that, Lulu.”   
  


“And he did it! What does that say about him?” she demanded.   
  


“What does that say about _you?”_   he laughed, unbothered. It’d bother  _ her  _ to know Barry was eating, like, worms! Then again, her boy did have some weird interests. She had to kiss that mouth, though, so hopefully those interests wouldn't ever extend to bugs.   
  


She parked in Taako’s driveway and thought about whether or not she wanted to know any more than he’d already shared. Lup was both deeply curious, and happy to not know _too much,_ about her brother’s new relationship. Mostly, she didn’t want to think about Taako doing anything more serious than kissing, even though he’d had her help organize his lingerie drawers once.  
  


“C’mon sis, help me do a video,” Taako leaned with his arms against the roof-edge of her car, “Gotta get that monetization cash to like.. pay for my toes.” He paused and she assumed he was wiggling them, even though she couldn’t see his feet.   
  


With a sigh, she got out of the car to follow him in.   
  


“See, I was thinking about trying something a little different… like acting like the camera’s a person, instead of a whole crowd of people.”   
  


“Lemme guess, you dork. Act like the camera is... Kravitz?”   
  


“Now you’re getting it!” He wasn't even  _acting_ annoyed. How was she supposed to tease him like this?  
  


Lup imagined that this dumb thing would probably go well, because Taako’s enthusiasm tended to spin a lot of his ideas into gold, but man. He was going to get super obnoxious super quick if he didn’t get _actually laid._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> somehow disappointed i didn't get a good opportunity to go into excruciating detail on the step-by-step processes of getting acrylic nails done, but tbh i don't imagine a baker or chef would want fake nails on his nails? and shellac seems sturdy enough for lup. but raven absolutely has inch long acrylics and it takes her a year to type anything.
> 
> back at home! somehow i got stuck in stand-still "traffic" for 3 hours while there was some kind of active shooter situation on the highway a mile ahead of me? the interstate was closed in both directions? this was after driving 7 out of 8 of the usual hours. anyway glad to be back and writing some more lol
> 
> also glad that im not the only one who enjoys just. dumb boys getting each other worked up. this one is, of course, not like that. but hoo boy, shit can only really escalate, huh? boy howdy. hoo boy.


	15. Madder Red

This time, Kravitz was more or less in charge of the date. He’d dressed up well and offered to come pick Taako up so they wouldn’t both have to park. When Taako opened the front door to greet him, Kravitz couldn’t help staring. Taako was literally stunning, Kravitz was rooted to the ground at the sight of him.  


When they’d discussed dressing plans, Taako had insisted on Kravitz wearing his old red tie, so they’d match. Here Kravitz was, wearing his tie, and Taako was in this beautiful red-and-black ombre getup standing in the doorway and staring right back.  


After a few minutes of gaping at each other, Taako started, “So if we want to actually go on our date…”  


“We should probably get going,” Kravitz shook himself a little.  


“I wouldn’t be so opposed to just going inside,” Taako said, even as he turned and locked the front door.  


Kravitz shook his head and smiled, and offered a him hand down the front steps, “And you get all dressed up for nothing? Besides, I made reservations.”  


“Mmhm, well, I did get dressed up mostly for you. But we’re making a _public debut_ , so yeah, we should definitely do that while we’re looking gorgeous.”  


He laughed and opened the door for Taako, something about the elf’s long dress making him feel like he should be extra chivalrous tonight, “You say _public debut_ like anybody’s going to care that we’re dating.”  


“Handsome,” Taako grinned from the passenger seat as Kravitz took off, “I’m _Taako_ . People in this town care what I’m up to.” Kravitz very much doubted that anybody outside of their circle of friends would be talking about this, but didn’t say so.  


Taako fell silent and didn’t seem to stop watching him. It was hard to tell through peripheral vision alone.  


“You remembered the thing about the eyeliner,” Taako said slowly, sounding delighted.  


Kravitz flushed and waved a hand, “You asked me to. It’s not like I didn’t have some, still.”  


“All dressed up pretty for me. You’re gonna be my arm-candy,” Taako sang, clearly having a great time already, and they hadn’t even gotten anywhere or had anything to eat yet.  


“We’re gonna have words about who here is the pretty one,” Kravitz warned, doing his best to try and keep up with Taako. He didn’t have a lot of practice actually _saying_ a flirt to anybody.  


“I’d fight you,” Taako said, words and tone agreeing to be competitive, but there was a hand on Kravitz’s thigh suddenly that seemed to be taking a different tack. Luckily, it didn’t stay there to be a distraction for long.  


The restaurant was one that his mother had recommended, and he’d seen Sloane and Hurley post photos from their date nights here, so he was sure that, as two guys, there wouldn’t be any issues. Unless it was a lesbians-only kind of situation, but that didn’t seem to be the case as they walked in.  


“Two for Macallister?” Kravitz was finding it hard to focus or be casual at all with Taako’s arm slung around his waist. They hadn’t had much time to be around each other since their other date, and clearly there was some touching Taako needed to get out of his system.  


Or maybe this level of handsiness was just going to be Kravitz’s life now? He felt like he should protest being hung off of in public, but he wouldn’t dream of asking Taako to move away. It also felt like maybe he should be more confident in touching Taako in kind. That’d have to get easier with exposure.  


The table and food were both... adequate. It was clear that Taako was more interested in people (the ones who might look their way, the interactions with their waiter, and _possibly_   Kravitz) than the food.  


Still, it was nice to have time to catch up things they hadn't already texted about on the last week, and a great excuse to ogle at each other. Kravitz still wasn’t really over the idea that Taako found him attractive. There was no way that that had always been the case, though: Kravitz had had a number of years stuck in braces. Taako had joked about them the same way everyone did, not cruelly or anything, just a light ribbing. So, at any rate, this mutual attraction _had_   to be pretty recent on Taako’s side.  


Kravitz, for his part, remembered exactly when he’d first decided that Taako was beautiful: it was some unimportant presentation that Davenport was making them all do in Elvish class, and Taako had stayed up all night doing his poster and speech at the last minute. He’d come into class with his hair all messed up and fly-aways around his head, and somehow his makeup was perfect.  


_Priorities_ , Kravitz thought now, but he’d always thought that messy hair was like a halo. Taako wasn’t anything so holy, he knew, but that was the moment he’d realized that he needed to be careful what he said around the elf. You couldn’t just let slip that you thought your friend was beautiful.  


Or maybe you could. Maybe you should?  


It was working out for him, now, but he couldn’t stop that intrusive thought that said _hey you’ve been missing out on this all along_ and _you would’ve been happier if you’d coughed up a confession at graduation._ Dwelling on regrets wasn’t going to do him any good when he had such potentially great things to look forward to.  


Kravitz was, overall, feeling cautiously optimistic.  


And then caught a foot trying to snake up his calf while they were finishing up a shared dessert, literally caught it in his hand. He squeezed the foot and tried to school the surprise out of his face as he hissed out, “What are y-- Maybe later?? We’re in _public_ , Taako.”  


Kravitz felt the tablecloth shift a little and was ready, this time,  to catch a second foot, biting his lip, “Behave, please? I’m into this whole thing, _trust me_ , but I don’t want to walk out of here looking like we were playing footsie under the table.” It was only through strong force of will that Kravitz was able to keep a straight face.  


Taako reclined in his chair as much as he could with both feet being held on the other end of the table, “Hmm, as long as there’s a reward for good behavior, I’ll consider it.” He sounded entirely too innocent.  


Kravitz let go of his feet with another squeeze, belatedly considering how it’d felt to have the tights shifting under his hands.  


He motioned for the check.  


When it came by, he couldn’t stop Taako from snatching it and sliding a card in immediately. Their server took the bill away and Taako quirked his lips, “I’d told you I’d treat! What kind of arm candy pays for their meal?”  


“We could have split it.”  


“You can get the tip,” Taako reached over to hold Kravitz’s hand, accepting his card when the server came back. “Could we get a to-go box?” He asked, motioning to the steak and risotto the elf hadn’t been able to finish. Kravitz was somewhat puzzled by this until they were walking out the door and Taako gestured with the box, “For you to take home so you don’t starve, duh.”  


Kravitz accepted the box of leftover, expensive food and set it down on the roof of the car so he’d have his hands free for whatever came next.  


What came next: Taako pulled him in by the tie for a kiss, all sweet from the dessert they hadn’t really had room for. And then: Taako muttered against his lips a reluctant apology for being pushy at dinner, and then being pushy now. And then: Kravitz was a sucker for that rare apology and rewarded it by kissing him quiet.  


“Do you want to come over for coffee?” Kravitz heard himself ask, resting his chin on Taako’s head while they caught a breath. This had been maybe too much for standing in the parking lot of a nice restaurant.  


He felt Taako nose in closer to his collarbone and say, “Yeah.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yoooo i forgot to even hype up Actual Date numero dos yesterday wtf  
> you can probably guess but tomorrow is gonna be a Fun Chapter wink
> 
> come on boys, lup was surprised about the kissing, pls calm down
> 
> anyway i'm having fun, i hope you are, too. i'm currently wrassling with chapter 31 and honestly the only way i can get through some of this PLOT garbage is to dangle smut a few chapters in front of myself as a reward  
> nah but really i'm happy with how things are shaping up. i've never in my life written anything this long, much less pulled an even half-decent story off.
> 
> guess i shouldn't get too excited, since i'm not done yet, but lol. y'all make it really easy to be excited to post every day. i appreciate the comments and support and when the dumb little details i throw in get noticed, it's just a great feeling. thank you for making my return to writing so fucking fun. ok author note over. have a good day i love you.


	16. I'm With You

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> skip from "And so they were" to "We should get changed" if you're avoiding stuff. it's M time again. still.

Taako let Kravitz wander ahead of him to the kitchen to put away the leftovers, he let eyes trail around the room to take in this whole… situation.   
  


The decorations were minimal, a little shabby. The furniture was super nice, though. Not hand-crafted Magnus Burnsides originals, but definitely not from Fantasy IKEA or anything. A little computer desk in a corner, the fold-up keyboard set up nearby. Everything he’d learned about Kravitz’s recent life was on display, and it made him yearn to just… fill up the space. Breathe color and life into it. He didn’t want Kravitz to come home to this grey space and be alone.   
  


As he thought these frankly horrifying thoughts, Kravitz returned to the living room empty handed. Taako raised an eyebrow, “Coffee?”   
  


“Did you really want a coffee?” Kravitz asked, sounding like he'd forgotten about that entirely.   
  


“Not the way you’d make it,” Taako admitted with a breathless laugh, closing the gap between them and running a hand down Kravitz’s jacket, “Are you okay with this?”   
  


“I did invite you here,” Kravitz pointed out, pulling up Taako’s other hand and kissing his palm, “It’s fine if you just want to change into pajamas and watch TV, though. I’m not expecting anything from you, Taako.”   
  


“No, no,  _ I’m _ fine,” Taako grinned. “I was thinking about unwrapping you all night, honestly. So many layers…” He pulled the buttons of Kravitz’s jacket undone. “I just thought it’d be more polite to ask first, you know. I’m not into this if you’re not into this,” Taako admitted.   
  


Kravitz leaned in to kiss him, “I’m into this.”   
  


And so they were.   
  


Somehow, jacket, tie, vest, and both sets of their shoes had made it off, but they hadn’t gotten anywhere near a bed. Taako was happy enough in Kravitz’s lap on the plush couch, trying to get the buttons of his shirt undone without looking at them or really focusing on them at all. His whole world was narrowed to the places where they met, Kravitz’s tongue in his mouth, hands on his ass, the places where Taako’s impatient fingers tried to get in between the buttons to touch Kravitz’s skin.   
  


This dress was quickly becoming an issue, and Taako wanted to get out of it, but didn’t want to get out of Kravitz’s lap. He leaned back against his calves to breathe and Kravitz started to follow his lips before getting the idea that they really did need air to live. Taako’s ears were so warm, and he could see Kravitz staring at him, and them, and flicked one his way in permission.   
  


“Can I?” Krav asked, like Taako hadn’t been telegraphing that he wanted them touched, and so Taako nodded and decided, hey, fuck it, trust Kravitz with his easiest weak spot. The sensation of (comparatively) cool fingers running down his ear made him yelp and lean in to press his nose into Kravitz’s neck, breathing hard.   
  


Kravitz experimentally did it again, gentle and careful, and Taako whined into his collar.   
  


“Mine aren’t half this sensitive,” Kravitz said wonderingly, “Does that feel good? Bad?”   
  


“S’good,” Taako mumbled, sucking a kiss into Kravitz’s neck since he was there already. “Help me outta this,” he complained, pawing at the buttons on the shirt in front of him again.   
  


“You want out of your dress?” Kravitz asked, crazily patient-sounding, but every time Taako looked at his face, the half-elf was about as wrecked a Taako felt, “Is there a zipper?”   
  


“Mmhm,” Taako carefully extricated himself from Kravitz’s legs just enough to turn around, lifting up his (wow, messy now) hair to get it out of the way. Of course, it wouldn’t be so simple as Krav just doing what he was told, because there were lips on the back of his neck, being pressed into his shoulder blades as Kravitz unzipped, and it made Taako smile at what a sap this dude was. He ground back a little into Kravitz’s crotch and appreciated the stutter in the kisses, “C’mon, free me from this thing.”   
  


“You’re so impatient,” Kravitz rested his chin on Taako’s shoulder, obligingly pulling the zipper down, “What do you want to do?” He asked, turning to work on a hickey of his own on Taako’s shoulder.   
  


“I just wanna touch you. I want you to touch  _ me _ . We aren’t gonna get much further than that, unless you wanna wait a while for round two,” Taako huffed, trying to squirm out of the dress. Kravitz’s hands were around his waist now, making that difficult, “ _ Please _ lemme get naked?”   
  


With a squeeze around his middle, Kravitz relented and let him stand up long enough to let the dress pool up on the floor (It was Lup’s, borrowed, he wasn’t allowed to come on it on pain of death). He still had his tights and panties on, but those were fine and his property to destroy if he wanted to. Taako let himself be pulled back into the fold, appreciating that Kravitz had taken that moment to unbutton the rest of his shirt.   
  


He stopped to appreciate what he saw, pushing the shirt from Kravitz’s shoulders and smoothing his hands down the arms he’d always wanted to touch. Not much could stop him from doing that at this point.   
  


Taako shuffled forward to straddle one of Kravitz’s still-trousered thighs, pulling Kravitz (who’d also been staring, which was delightful) into another kiss. It was wet and good and he ground against Kravitz’s hip, smiling against his lips, “I thought you were gonna touch me, stud.”   
  


“If you’d give me a minute,” Kravitz bumped their noses together, reaching down to (thank gods) push Taako’s tights and panties down enough to get his cock out. “Do you want just hands or,” he started, a slow stroke had Taako arching gently into his palm.   
  


“Honestly, your hands are one of my fav--” Taako broke off into a moan as Kravitz started to touch him in earnest. He was too excited already, and then Kravitz's free hand was on his ear again, rubbing his fingers into it while his other hand stroked a similar pattern below. He could feel the roll of Kravitz's groin against his knee, but everything else he felt was blurring together. This felt like fire, felt like everything at once, felt like _so_   much.  
  


He panted into Kravitz’s hair and neck, and it felt no time at all before he was coming hard into Kravitz's hand. He’d be embarrassed if he wasn’t so fucking  _ psyched _ . Taako sighed as he came down from it, kissing at Kravitz’s collarbone affectionately, “Your turn.”   
  


“Mm... I’m alright.”   
  


This gave Taako pause enough to sit back on his heels again, shivering a little in his naked-and-sweatiness, “What? No, I’m gonna return the favor, broseph.” He was confused.   
  


Kravitz looked sheepish, “Er, I mean. It’s already taken care of.”   
  


Taako tilted his head, and glanced down at Kravitz’s pants, “Wait, did you…?”   
  


“We should get changed,” Kravitz said shortly, face about at red as it was capable of being. He also had Taako’s lipstick all over the lower half of his face.   
  


Taako did  _ not  _ possess the grace necessary to hold back a bark of laughter. “We didn’t even get you out of your pants before you came. My dude. Next time I’m gonna insist that we do the clothes thing before we do the kissing thing.” He scooted to the side to pull his tights and panties the rest of the way off, and then shivered again, remembering that he hadn’t really asked about staying the night.   
  


“Too easily distracted,” Kravitz agreed readily, shucking his trousers and wet boxers off.   
  


Taako let out a low whistle.   
  


“Case in point. C’mon, lets get cleaned up,” Taako accepted an offered hand and they went to the bathroom wash rag off and also make out a little more. Much less intense, this time, now that the edge was off, but it was still nice. Taako took off their collective makeup, way more careful around Kravitz's eyes than his own, and made an attempt at untangling his hair, which had been nice tousled waves before Kravitz’s hands had gotten into it. The braid he put it in was still pretty messy, but would save him from a lot of bedhead sins. Kravitz was rummaging for a spare toothbrush, which Taako found very endearing.   
  


He said so, “Sweet boy, helping me with dental hygiene.”   
  


“If you’re going to stay the night, I want you to be comfortable,” Kravitz made a noise of triumph, retrieving an unopened brush from an abandoned dentist freebie bag in the back of a drawer. It was yellow, which explained why it hadn’t been used.   
  


“Hmm, shower in the morning?” Taako asked, waiting to start brushing until Kravitz was done so they didn’t have to take turns spitting.   
  


Kravitz rinsed and waved a hand vaguely, “I wanna be in bed.”   
  


“You wanna be  _ hooolding _ me,” Taako giggled, borrowing the cup to rinse too. He totally understood not sharing a toothbrush, but not sharing a water cup felt wasteful.   
  


“Yes?” Kravitz said, like he wasn’t sure if that was okay.   
  


Taako grinned and admitted, “I want you to be holding me, too.”   
  


It was tempting to try and stay awake and mess around some more, but Taako’s energy left him the moment they were snuggled up together. He liked to be the big spoon sometimes, but the comfort of just being held, and sure that he was wanted, was enough to have him drifting off right away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> y'all i went to check out my old hetalia fics for grins and the longest one was 2k words so uhhhh  
> the current word count as of 33.5 chapters written is 56k, so uh. dang for real tho. im closing in on the end of the fic from that end, and its so weird?? (i know what ur thinking: how can there be that much more to this, they are already together, and the answer is. i don't know. no no i do know. you'll find out.)  
> at least that'll give me time to work on something else before this is done posting. maybe go for longer chapters next time around, lmao.
> 
> _tomorrow's_ shit is the actual wet and wild stuff i was thinking about when i said the words 'wet and wild' probably a week ago  
>  ps what you missed if you skipped: taako's got sensitive ears and also had borrowed his dress from lup
> 
> one last thing  
> confession time: the entire reason i wrote magic into this fic, and magical races, instead of just doing a modern human au, was entirely based upon my wanting to do sensitive elf ears. i'm not even sorry. but that's 100% the reason lmao. thanks for coming to my elf ear ted talk.


	17. Tether

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the not super subtle preview/warning for M time on this one starts at  
> "it wasn’t a very big shower" and is done at "time to body wash again"

The beauty of being senior in their respective workspaces (even if Kravitz wasn’t especially happy about his) was being able to arrange their shifts to close up, and thus be able to sleep in.   
  


There hadn’t been an actual plan to do this, or at least Kravitz didn’t know about one, but it was nice to wake up at seven in the morning not because of work, but because his phone chimed about wanting to be plugged in.  
  


“Plug mine in, too,” Taako said sleepily, gesturing out the door to the living room, where he’d probably left it. Kravitz was already up, at least temporarily, so he didn’t really mind. He grabbed a spare chord from by the computer and plugged their phones in beside each other. It felt weirdly domestic. So was Taako opening up the covers to coax him back in. “It’s sleep-in day,” he said, wrapping an arm around Kravitz’s middle and promptly falling back asleep.   
  


Kravitz ran a hand through the elf’s hair thoughtfully, remembering how his mother’d always said she didn’t need to sleep, that elves didn’t need to at all. _ (“But  _ you _ do, because you’re half human, so go to bed.”)  _ He knew his mother had usually slept, though, and clearly Taako did.   
  


He set an alarm to go off at nine, so they’d have plenty of time for a good shower and breakfast before work.   
  


Taako did still complain when the alarm went off again, trying to convince Kravitz that they ought to stay in bed and be kissing, but perked up at the prospect of a shower. Kravitz watched him hop out of bed and go to inspect his shampoo and conditioner situation.   
  


While Taako did that, Kravitz went to his drawers to try and figure out if he had a change of clothes that would fit or suit Taako in any way. No skirts or anything, and most of his pants were going to be too long.   
  


He scrounged up a pair of leggings that he’d maybe worn twice and forgotten he owned, and he’d let Taako figure out a top for himself. Kravitz knew, intuitively, that whatever shirt Taako stole, he was probably not getting back.   
  


“I thought we were gonna shower,” Taako’s head poked out of the bathroom. He’d found a spare towel and set it out.   
  


“Just thinking about what you’re wearing afterwards,” Kravitz went to join him.   
  


Taako stood aside to let Kravitz turn the water on, holding his hands to his chest in mock-shock, “You mean I can’t go to a bakery wearing a gown?”   
  


“You also probably shouldn’t go naked,” Kravitz chuckled, pulling Taako into the shower with him.   
  


“I should be allowed, since I own the place,” Taako’s ears flicked when the water landed on them, but Kravitz watched them calm down after a second. His own ears never moved around as much as Taako’s, so it was easy to get distracted, watching them.   
  


Kravitz hummed, thoughtful, “I’m pretty sure there are laws against that.”   
  


_ “Laws.”   _ Taako scoffed, shampooing quickly. Kravitz had pulled his hair up to avoid getting it too wet, so he’d skipped ahead to body wash. He took his time when he realized Taako was watching. Taako did not stop in his hair routine, generously conditioning his hair with what seemed like half of the bottle at once, and stepping away from the water and into Kravitz’s space (though there hadn’t been much separation in the first place -- it wasn’t a very big shower).   
  


“This okay?” Taako asked, reaching out to touch Kravitz's dick lightly. It twitched in his hand and made them both laugh a little.   
  


“Of course it’s okay,” Kravitz kissed the corner of his mouth.   
  


“Just tell me if it’s suddenly not-okay,” Taako said, in a tone that was supposed to be flippant, but Kravitz knew he really did mean it. And then Taako carefully sank down to his knees and started to stroke him, and this was  _ absolutely _ okay with Kravitz.   
  


He leaned against the wall as Taako took the head of him into his mouth, sliding his hand into some exceedingly slippery hair. Taako moaned gently around his cock and the wet hot vibration of it was something he’d imagined for years.   
  
  
Those daydreams didn’t measure up to the real thing, Taako looking up at him with his mouth stretched around _ him _ and moving and sucking and darting a hand down to touch himself, too. Kravitz wanted to protest, that he wanted to be the one to touch Taako, but there really weren’t any words he could make his mouth say besides  _ Taako  _ and  __ good.   
  


Taako knew what he was doing, in a way that would have been intimidating if it wasn't so hot. The way his tongue moved, the way he paced himself, the way his hands knew just where to be. Kravitz would've taken notes if he was thinking straight at all. He didn't think the water would have time to go cold, if Taako kept at him that way, which. He'd already embarrassed himself the night before, and Taako hadn't cared except to pout over a lost opportunity.   
  


When he felt that precipice approaching quickly, he tightened a hand in Taako’s conditioner-slick hair and managed to say Taako’s name warningly, but Taako swallowed around him with a groan and that was it, that was the ballgame. He saw stars and wobbled, holding onto Taako’s head and a shower shelf for stability, and when he came back into himself Taako was looking up with him, looking very satisfied.   
  


“Can I help you out?” Kravitz said roughly, releasing the hold he had on Taako’s pretty and slimy (for now) hair.   
  


Taako shook his head, tutting and carefully rising back to his feet, “I dunno, then I’ll owe you again.” Kravitz could see, of course, that there was still some helping to be done.   
  


“I don’t see how that’s a bad thing,” he said innocently, and pulled Taako into a kiss.   
  


“Of course you don’t, it benefits you!” Taako laughed against his lips, before acquiescing and kissing him back with the energy of remembered urgency.   
  


Kravitz could taste himself on Taako’s tongue, and wanted to reciprocate on that front, but also didn’t want to get his hair wet, kneeling down. He'd probably regret not taking the initiative, later. There’d be time for a lot of things, eventually. Kravitz knew how to be patient (or at least, he’d thought he did. He wasn’t as sure, now).   
  


He just used his hands, because he knew he could manage that much, and Taako didn’t seem to mind the repeat performance in the least. Kravitz sucked on Taako’s earlobe as he came with a wail, and Kravitz held him steady.   
  


“Mm, time to body wash again,” Kravitz hummed, cleaning them both off and giving Taako space to rinse his hair, once the elf wasn’t leaning half his weight against him.   
  


Towelling dry (and finding Taako another spare towel for his hair), Kravitz pulled out a work uniform for later and elected for a cozy sweatshirt and pajama pants for now. It was only… almost ten. They had time to lounge around some.   
  


“What was this about wearing stuff afterwards?” Taako joined him in the bedroom, flopping onto the foot of the bed with just the hair towel on.   
  


“I’ve got some leggings that should work.” Kravitz tossed them his way, frowning suddenly, “Do you want underwear? Is it weird to borrow mine?”   
  


“Hmm, depends on how long a top is. I could rewear the ones from last night, since they’re only mildly gross.” Kravitz wrinkled his nose at this idea, but far be it from him to dictate another man’s underwear needs. “So no top picked out?”   
  


“Thought you’d probably want to pick, to be honest,” and if it meant losing a shirt in the process, it was worth it for the way Taako’s eyes lit up. Stealing other people’s clothes had been a known quirk of Taako and Lup's that they’d claimed to grow out of, but there was no hiding how excited this idea was probably making Taako.   
  


Taako hopped off the bed, and stretched, “Anything off-limits?”   
  


“Uh, don’t take my work polos? Otherwise, it’s fair game, probably.”   
  


Kravitz got dressed while Taako was rummaging in his closet, turning around to find Taako holding an old but soft grey-and-black plaid button-down and a belt, “I’ll give the belt back if I remember.”   
  


“Or I’ll take it back when I get a go at stealing from _your_ closet.” Kravitz bravely kept a straight face at the look Taako gave him for this. He watched Taako pull on the black leggings and button up the shirt, tying the belt around his middle. It wasn’t quite long enough to be a shirt-dress, but it went down far enough to cover everything that needed covering.  
  


They got a nice breakfast made (mostly thanks to Kravitz actually buying groceries in anticipation of cooking along with a Taako video), and curled up all cozy and warm on the couch afterward. Kravitz finger-combed Taako’s still moist hair and they both sighed when another phone alarm went off in the other room. It was like the wakeup call to go back to their actual lives, when for a brief window this had seemed like the reality: waking up together, eating together, being together.   
  


He drove Taako to his apartment so that the elf wouldn't be stranded at the bakery later, watching Taako hop straight into his car and wave.

  
Kravitz waved back. He wanted this, but all the time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ok ok ok hi, SO, you gotta give conditioner time to like.. be absorbed before you rinse it. taako's just killing time, ok ok
> 
> what you missed if you skipped: nothing. you good. no worries.
> 
> i'm real rusty with this stuff so i'm sorry about it being short. getting back into the swing of things, smut-wise. cracks my knuckles dramatically for effect. it hurts and i regret it immediately, spring break is coming up and i draw people at a theme park for a living, and i need my hands.
> 
> just got done with finale pt 3 for the third time for me, and the first time for my mom, so that's fun. i finally remembered to pay attention to the Kravitz Warm Hands bit this time. i never rewind, i only start over the whole podcast from the beginning.
> 
> anyway this is enough spam. you'd think i'd run out of crap to write here since i post every day but nope. thank you, as always, for your support. the best thing ever is to get a random notif about a comment when i'm buying groceries or whatever the fuck. i'm probably going to post another chapter in today-proper (ie, midday or evening on friday) because i'm impatient........... we'll see.
> 
> have a good day, and i love you.


	18. Keep Your Heart

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> make sure you didn't miss the previous chapter, since i posted them both today :0

Lup was almost done grading papers when a knock at her office door broke her groove. She let her ears turn toward the noise and continued to scan papers, figuring that whoever it was would let themselves in or wait.  
  


It was her brother, so of course he let himself in and flopped into the chair by her desk, setting a box down on top of her Outbox. She arched a brow in his direction. She had not been expecting Taako to come meet her at work, and it wasn't like him to actually  _knock_   before barging in.  
  


“What’s this?”  
  


“Cookies, mostly,” he was playing with her stapler.  
  


“Thanks?” Lup hazarded, trying not to rush through these last few papers. It wouldn’t be right to slap a fake grade on these just because her twin was in some weird mood.  
  


He pulled out his phone to entertain himself, “Well, yeah, they’re for you.”  
  


She’d intended to input all of the grades before going home, but guessed that it could wait til morning, logging out of her computer and shooting Barry a text.  
  


18:45  
Lup: _Taako brought me cookies at work?? Guess we’re hanging out_  
  


Barry: _Someone’s happy, lol._  
  


Lup packed up her things and picked up the box, when it seemed like Taako was just going to follow her out without grabbing it, still tapping at his phone and smiling. Someone’s happy, indeed.  
  


“What’s up?” she asked, locking the door and leading him back out toward the parking lot.  
  


“Just wanted to see my favorite sister.”  
  


“Suspicious,” she declared, “Your place, or mine?”  
  


“Hmm, if I went to yours, I could keep up this chain of wearing borrowed clothes,” Taako sounded like he thought this was the funniest thing, doing a little spin as Lup looked at his outfit properly.  
  


No, nope, these were not Taako’s clothes. He didn’t wear that much black when a favorite celebrity died.  
  


“You didn’t do anything to my dress, though, right?” Lup said, feeling like she understood the cookie situation a lot better, now. These were _‘thank you for helping me get my shit together, PS I got laid’_ cookies. She wrinkled her nose at the thought of her twin being gross in her clothes, but sacrifices needed to be made sometimes for the sake of family. Or love. Or getting laid, she guessed.  
  


“It’s totally fine, got it in my car. You go in front,” Taako directed, since they’d both driven here, they both drove to his townhouse separately.  
  


This gave Lup enough time to decide how she was going to tackle this interrogation. What she wanted to know: had it gone well? Was Taako happy? Did Kravitz seem happy? Were their heads out of their asses? What she did not want to know: had her dumb brother and their mutual friend done the do?  
  


It wasn’t even so much the gross factor, it was more like… plausible deniability, at this point. She’d managed to avoid telling the betting pool about the dudes kissing already, so that was on her. Having the burden of knowledge that they’d gone further than that would be too much. She was already dying, not being able to confide in Barry without losing the bet. Barry probably knew anyway, though, because he was smart as hell and could read their friends pretty fucking well. If Taako was bringing her cookies after a date (and the nature of Taako and Lup’s relationship was that _of course_ she’d been told, and Barry had been told, about his going on a date), Barry could probably guess what was up. She didn’t trust him not to rat her out about the bet if she brought it up, though. Husband or no.  
  


She carried the box of cookies in with her at Taako’s so they wouldn’t get gross in the warm car, kicking her shoes off at the door and hanging up her blazer. Lup took in the general disarray of the living room and started picking up clothes off the floor with a sigh. She knew the floor was actually pretty clean, having been here during Mandatory Fantasy Vacuum Time a week prior, and that these clothes hadn’t been worn... but, yeah, this explained why she’d been begged to lend him The Fire Dress on her day off, yesterday.  
  


“I’m gonna make you something so good,” Taako sang from the kitchen, which was weird, because usually he cooked for her for a video. He was setting out stuff on the countertop without care for how prettily it was placed, when she came to join him after putting all of his clothes back in his room. Taako would probably leave the pile of clothes at the end of his bed until the next time she came over and made him put them away, but she wasn’t his mom.  
  


“What’s the occasion?” Lup asked, though she thought she could guess, hopping up onto barstool.  
  


“Hmmm, just, y’know,” Taako hummed, pulling out a pot.  
  


The ingredients laid out on the counter added up to… “Tortilla soup?” Lup grinned. It was one of her favorites. Taako really was happy, if he was spoiling her so much.  
  


“Since you let me borrow your pretty dress, and like, also because I love you? You’re the best sister.”  
  


Lup gaped at him. This really was an alien in the place of her brother. She couldn’t say she didn’t like the idea of him being _considerate_ and _grateful,_ though. She still needed him to be her rock sometimes, when Barry couldn’t, but she didn’t lean as hard on him now that they lived apart. Lup couldn’t guess at how hard it must be to live alone. She’d never done that.  
  


He still came to her for everything, though, even when there were other friends he could trust with his problems. Magnus had been complaining to her about not hearing from Taako much, and she knew that maybe she should encourage him to go to other people now and then… but she loved him. She wasn’t going to turn Taako away from confiding in her, from hanging out together. Lup was the one who had separated them, she felt like she’d always be trying to make up for leaving him to himself.  
  


“You’re so welcome,” she said, and wiped at her eyes while his back was turned, “I’m guessing… the date went well?”  
  


“Mmhm, I should say so.”  
  


“You don’t seem scared at all, now?” She hadn’t meant it to come out as a question, but that was the crux of this. Taako didn’t seem like he needed comfort, or her presence to pull him back into a person. He seemed… just fine.  
  


He turned toward her, but his eyes were upward, thoughtful. “Some things changed, I think. Or maybe they were the same and we just… realized it?”  
  


“Getting laid changed your life, huh?” Lup was one hundred percent sure, now, that that’d happened. She couldn’t resist saying something about it.  
  


His ears went pink, but he didn’t get all fussy or deny anything, “I mean, yeah? Weird, right? Like… with his--”  
  


“Nope!” She made an X with her arms and he laughed.  
  


“Anyway. Something just clicked into place. Dunno how to explain. Like… I woke up and he was there and it felt like… like it was supposed to be that way.” He’d turned away toward the pot as he poured a pre-made but twin-approved chicken stock in.  
  


Lup hopped off the stool to go pull him into a hug, “Well, I’m glad for you, Koko. Especially if he feels the same way.”  
  


“That’s the weirdest part! He seems like he does,” Taako huffed into her hair, pulling away and gesturing with his hands. “Was he always like that?” Lup nodded. “How come I never noticed?”  
  


“You weren’t looking. Literally, you didn’t want to make eye contact. He didn't either. It was cute for a little while, but you guys drove everybody crazy.” She went to cut up the chicken for the soup.  
  


Taako hummed an acknowledgement of that, busying himself with the vegetables quietly. They worked in silence for a few long moments before he spoke up again. “He’s supporting me so much… so completely. I almost don’t know how to deal,” he confessed, “But it’s so nice. I want him to feel that, too. Like some weird, supportive revenge? I know he’s not happy with his work, or his art, or any of that, right now… I want to support him, Lulu, to like… lift him up? Man, this like… _liking_ your boyfriend thing really sucks, sis.”  
  


She snorted, “You’ll come around.”  
  


“I just… don't wanna mess this up.”  
  


“You probably won’t,” Lup offered, knowing how patient Kravitz was.  
  


“...okay.” He said, quietly, and sounded like he believed her.  
  


They ate in comfortable silence, and Lup mused on this change in her brother. He’d be all energy again in no time, for sure, but it was refreshing to be able to just. Sit. They hadn’t had to make a big production of hanging out, he hadn’t opened up a bottle of anything to drink, it was just Twin Time, sans that anxious energy he usually had about him after work.  
  


She’d been mildly skeptical of Taako’s ability to slot  _dating_ into his schedule, and was pleasantly happy to be wrong about it. It was weird, but not bad, so see him so chill and upbeat. Kravitz was a stronger grounding force than she’d expected him to be. Or, and she did not want confirmation, he had some bomb-ass dick powers.  
  


The soup was perfect.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> when i started to post this i realized it was only 1.2k words so. sorry if anything got repetitive when i started adding stuff in, haha. lup is gonna die if the bet doesn't work out for her. she'd probably gotta keep up not knowing shit for months. dang.
> 
> im getting hype for 200 kudos, my dudes... im still just so happy and overwhelmed about your positivity toward my thing. thank you, also, to people who recommended this story to their friends. it's so buck wild to think about people discussing this thing or thinking a friend would like it... gosh!!!
> 
> hope you enjoyed this double update today, have a great evening, friends.


	19. Escape the Nest

Raven missed the first few messages she’d received during a conference call about a specific tree in the cemetery. She was absolutely steadfast in keeping it, because it was ninety years old and well loved for its shade and beauty. Renovating such a place required a delicate hand, because genuinely, she just wanted it _improved,_ not changed.  


When she got a few minutes to herself, her phone let her know she’d missed several messages from… Taako Highchurch. They seemed to have a lot of thought put into them, which was funny. He must have been nervous. The comments she’d been seeing more often lately on Kravitz’s posts from Taako were always lowercase and missing some punctuation, but these were so careful.

 

14:22  
Taako: _Hi Raven! I had a few questions for you about, um, that time you were funding the orchestra?_  


Taako: _It’s okay if you’d rather not share anything about this with me, but I’m trying to figure out how to help Kravitz._  


Taako: _Was he the one that asked you to stop? Or did you do it on your own?_  


Taako: _He doesn’t talk about it very much. But. I know he can do this, and make it work, because he’s so talented. I want to do what I can… for him._  


Taako: _I guess you’re busy, sorry to bother you._  


Raven smiled broadly and wished Istus was around to help her take a… screen shoot. That was when you took a photo of your screen, she was sure. She’d once used her webcam to take a photo of the phone screen and gotten only laughter from her wife.  


She thought back to five years ago, when Kravitz had been fairly fresh out of college still, and eager to get on his feet, and she’d been eager to help him make that happen. At the time, he hadn’t thought so hard about where the money was coming from, for their poorly attended concerts. For the venue, for the pay for Kravitz and his fellows. She had more than enough to support him, and the illusion of his earning it had been alright for that year. When he’d realized that he was still just… the word he’d used was _freeloading,_ Raven had agreed to give him some space to figure his career out on his own.

  
Things were still a little bit strained, when music came up between them, but he’d moved away from resentment. Raven could only be glad he wasn't angry. She still wanted to help, of course, but knew that her son would be much more wary if her hands were pulling any strings.  


14:45  
Raven: _Hello Taako, don’t worry about being a bother to me, honestly. It’s a pleasure to hear from you. I heard you and Kravitz had a date? He n(1/6)_  


Raven: _ever let me know how it went, but I do hope it went well. Here is how it went before: He was upset at not being independent of me. I wa(2/6)_  


Raven: _nt him to do well and felt like my influence ought to help. If you can think of a way for him to reach a wider audience, it may be enou(3/6)_  
  
  
Raven: _gh to get things rolling more naturally. I hear you’re talented at Networking Online (I’m good at it too, but not Online). Maybe that w(4/6)_  


Raven: _ould help? :) Please let me know how you’re going to proceed, and do keep in touch. Kravitz forgets to call, but I’d love to hear from e(5/6)_  
  
  
Raven: _ither of you. Thank you. Love, Raven Macallister-Fortuna(6/6)_  


She wasn’t expecting a response so quickly, but it was only a minute or so later (and a few bites into the lunch she was just getting around to) that she got Taako making her phone rattle on the desk again.  


Taako: _did he have any promotional material? or like a website?_  


Raven thought about this as she cut another bite of her salmon burger and skewered it on a fork. There had been something like that. She wasn’t sure how to send it to Taako over the phone. She told him as much and continued eating.  


Taako: _did krav ever email u any of it?_  


Raven: _Yes, I believe he sent me a copy of those things so I could send them to people. I’m afraid I didn’t download them at the time._  


Taako: _thats alright, can you forward them to me??_  


She pulled up her email program. There were a lot of messages about coupons and sales, and maybe three from actual people. Her inbox, now that she was looking at it, was in the thousands. She went through a couple of pages, opening and deleting messages, before deciding that there had to be an easier way.  


Raven: _Taako, how do I get to the old email?_  


Taako: _um… try kravitzs name in the search bar_  


She was delighted to see all of the notifications of Kravitz’s interactions with her from fantasy Facebook, and a few pages back she saw their actual correspondences. Some of them had the little paper clips that meant _attachment,_ but she’d also been explicitly told not to download any attachments, ever, from anybody. Both Kravitz and Istus, as well as her computer repairman had said this. Raven clicked the little _Forward_ button and asked for Taako’s address. This wasn’t so hard, after all. Bragging to her wife would make Istus laugh, but she did love to hear Istus laugh. Even at her expense.  


Taako: _thanks so much mrs m im going to try and get kravs head out of his butt asap_  


Taako: _he really hates his job at wave echo so i wanna save him from that_  


Taako: _maybe if that doesnt work out i can let him wash dishes at the bakery LOL_  


Taako:  _ps pls don't tell him about this im gonna try and look into stuff ahead of time_  


Raven: _Good luck, Taako. :) :) :) :D_

 

 

* * *

 

 

Later that evening, at dinner with her wife, Raven relayed all of her new gossip. Istus looked overjoyed to hear that Kravitz’s new relationship seemed to be going well, and excited at the prospect of hearing Kravitz play music on a real stage again.  


“How soon do you think we can get them both to come over for dinner? I’d love to swap recipes with Taako, and he seems so sweet.”  


“Sweet!" she laughed. "He _was_ usually on good behavior when he thought I’d be watching, but that little elf was a rascal,” Raven reminisced, smiling. “His ears had been too big for his head, and he'd bump them into doorways when they ran around. They couldn’t ever get permission for Kravitz to stay the night at Taako’s house after his father remarried, so they’d come to me with big eyes after a playdate. I wish I had more photos of that. Maybe in Kravitz’s room…” It was still _his_ room, because she didn’t see any need to change it to something else.  


Even if he bristled at the idea, she was always going to have a place for him to come home to, if he wanted. Elves in antiquity had lived for centuries, and still outlived other races now, but by tens of years instead of hundreds. Raven dearly hoped that the elven blood her son had inherited would be enough that he could outlive her, but such things were never certain. When he’d first been born, she’d had trouble reckoning with the idea that he might wither before her. Now, it still made her heart ache to think of that, but it was easier now that he was more grown. She’d had a lot of time to come to terms with it. It was lucky that Istus was younger than her; they'd probably both be old around the same time. It was hard to know until the time came, with interspecies situations. Now there was another reason to hope Kravitz lived longer, if he stayed with an elf his own age.  


All she wanted for him, really, was for him to be happy. Of course. If he found that in music again, or found that in _Taako_ again, or if he found that in moving away or joining a circus, she would support him in whatever endeavors he took up. She would not ever have another son, but Raven loved the one she had, and would love whoever made Kravitz happy, absolutely. If that person was already someone who resided in her heart (however long it had been), it would be all the easier to love him _like_ another son.  


21:55  
Raven: _Istus and I would like to invite you both over for dinner sometime soon. Please let me know what evening would work best for you. :)_  


Taako: _next friday would be great!! how dressed up should i be_  


Raven: _We’ll eat in, so whatever you’re comfortable in, dear._  


Taako: _right right ok_

  
Taako: _ill let krav know_

 _  
_ Raven: _See you then. :)_

  
Taako: _:)_  


Right, yes. Maybe he was tricky, or over-familiar, or sarcastic, but Taako wasn't bad. If anyone deserved to hold Kravitz's heart, it felt right that it was him.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hopefully raven's texts aren't too hellish to read. imagine that they also showed up on taako's end in the wrong order, maybe minutes apart from each other, for true accuracy
> 
> 200 KUDOS BROKEN hell yes thanks guys. we're gonna go on a rollercoaster this week so buckle the fuck in I GUESS
> 
> remember how i was like.. "i wanna have a buffer by the time i go back to work".. i didn't really expect to be almost done writing the whole goddamn thing by the time work started up. luckily for writing, it's only weekends right now. follow the tumblr link to an instagram link if you wanna see my ~caricature~ work.
> 
> have a great saturday, pls send positive tourism vibes my way, i love all of y'all


	20. If So

He’d been invited over to eat dinner with Barry and Lup after orchestra practice, and Kravitz was happy to join them. Before reconnecting with Taako, this had been something they’d manage to do maybe once a month.  


Now, even as they tucked into a pizza, Kravitz felt like maybe they should have invited him Taako along.  


It wasn’t awkward though, they had the TV on and muted, enjoying the pizza and some beers (not Kravitz’s favorite thing to drink, but Barry stocked good stuff, as beers went). They were in the middle of a heated and very important discussion.  


“No, they’re definitely together. Didn’t you see how happy Johann looked at practice?” Kravitz said, setting down his bottle with a _clunk_ on the sidetable.  


“That’s Johann _happy??”_ Lup was losing it laughing, “What was he looking like before they hooked up? Did he look like a sack of sad garbage, or??”  


Barry thwapped at her shoulder, and she leaned heavily on him in retaliation, “Being with somebody doesn’t cure depression, babe. What if it's not Avi he got with, though?”  


“I’m just saying,” Kravitz got up for a new drink, shaking his head at this new alternative idea, “That I’m _relatively sure_ that Johann and Avi got together ages ago. For Johann, he looks happy. Doubt me all you want, but unless _you_ want to ask him about it next time…”  


“Gods no, can you imagine? What if I ask but I’m _right?”_ She flopped the top half of her body sideways into Barry’s lap and made both boys laugh.  


“That’d be pretty horrible,” Barry agreed, taking the risky half-full beer bottle from her hand and placing it on the coffee table. They’d set up camp on the couch and left Kravitz to the armchair, angled to point at the TV.  


Kravitz frowned at the fridge, “I can’t believe you don’t have any cider or wine or… anything good.”  


He’d said this quietly, he thought, but Lup called from the couch, “We got _spirits_ and shit, too, dude, mix yourself something.” Kravitz poked around the liquor cabinet, now that he’d been invited to. He should plan on hailing a rideshare to get home, at this rate. Lup and Barry would not be able to drive him home, and they would not be shy about fooling around one room away from an overnight guest. Kravitz could really do without hearing any of that again. Especially not with Lup’s voice sounding so much like Taako’s.  


He made himself a vodka sprite and returned to the living room, where his friends were chatting quietly about the imagined specifics of a Johann-Avi partnership. Kravitz pulled out his phone.  


“Gonna text my bro?” Lup asked, lying on her back with her head still in Barry’s lap. She smirked at him from upside-down and Kravitz ducked his head.  


“I suppose. I feel like… like he should be here? He probably won’t mind that we did this without him, but he’d want to be invited, right?”  


Barry covered Lup’s mouth with his hand, and then made a face when she undoubtedly licked his palm, “So call him and see if he wants to come. S’not too late, we still have pizza and stuff.”  


Usually he’d just text the elf for things like this. Talking out loud was something you did in each other’s company, or something like that. But Barry putting the idea in his head was what had him tapping the little phone icon and listening to the ring.  


“Put it on speaker,” Lup requested, muffled still by Barry’s hand. Kravitz obliged, because he guessed Lup would be able to hear Taako’s side of the conversation anyway, with her ears. It wouldn’t be fair for Barry to be the only one who wasn’t able to hear.  


Taako picked up on the fourth ring, right when Kravitz was expecting to get a voicemail message.  


_“Krav? What’s up? Everything okay?”_ Taako didn’t sound panicked, but he did sound concerned.  


“Everything’s okay,” Kravitz started, and then forgot why he was calling for a second, “Right, um, I’m hanging out with Barry and Lup and wanted to know if you’d come over?”  


_“Hey, Taako, is that Kravitz? Hi Kravitz!”_ Everyone perked up a little at hearing Magnus’s voice on the other end of the line. What was Taako doing with Magnus? Kravitz loved the guy, but it seemed strange for Taako to be there at nine on a Thursday evening.  


_“Shut up, you meathead, I’m having a conversation!”_ Taako groused from the other side of the line, and then quieter, _“You’re at their place?”_  


Kravitz nodded before remembering that this was a phone call. Barry snickered at him. “Y-yeah, I’m with them. We have pizza. Maybe Magnus can come too?”  


_“Nah, Magnus has shit to do, don’cha, buddy?”_  


_“I could go! I’m not gonna start on it tonight anyway.”_  


_“Nah, nah, he’s super busy. I’ll be over in a bit. See ya there._ ”  


The call ended. Kravitz’s eyebrows were tightly drawn together for some reason, so he forced himself to relax his face a little. He looked to his friends on the couch for some kind of insight and they both shrugged at him.  


He wasn’t really… concerned, about Magnus being in Taako’s life again, or anything so weird and jealous, but this was his fourth drink, and he was a having trouble parsing it. Why didn’t Taako want them to hear that Magnus was with him? Magnus was married, and happily so, so Kravitz didn’t worry about _that_ but he just… didn’t understand.  


He killed off his drink and got up to make another, a little wobbly.  


“I’m sure he’s just doing something sneaky and weird. Or maybe he’s gonna hang out with Magnus some more again, who knows?” Lup said, having sat back up and found a blanket to tuck around Barry, who was dozing in spite of the weird happenings. “Before he started talking with you again, he only had me and Barry and, like, his employees. Maybe that Angus kid? He wasn’t even talking to Merle that much. It might be weird for a bit, if he wants to get in touch with old friends, too, but I don’t think he’s got--” She paused, burped, “I don’t think he’s got any bad intentions, with you.”  


“It’s fine,” Kravitz said, “I want him to have friends. Guess I just thought he’d wanna…”  


“Hmm?”  


“He’d say like… _‘hey Kravitz I’m going to Magnus’s house.’_ ” Kravitz knew without needing input that his Taako impression had been very bad.  


“You’re not his keeper,” Lup pointed out, checking the bottles on the coffee table to try and figure out which one was still half-full.  


“I know. I don’t want to be. I just. We tell each other what we’re doing, a lot. I like to know he’s safe.”  


“He’s safe with Magnus and Julia. He’ll come over and be safe here, too.”  


Kravitz flopped heavily into the chair and felt childish for it, for his reaction. He remembered, foggily, that he hadn’t exactly texted Taako about coming to hang out and drink with Taako’s sister and brother-in-law, either, and felt dumb for reacting at all. Magnus was a non-threat, and a positive influence in most things.  


Maybe he just felt weird about it because of some sense of insecurity he thought he’d left behind years and years ago. He pressed the heel of a palm against an eye. When they’d been in third grade, Kravitz hadn’t had class with Taako, or Lup, or anybody he’d consider a friend. They’d still play at recess, though. In fourth grade, it’d been the same thing, for Kravitz, except that Magnus had moved to their school district, and he’d been in Taako’s class, and they’d been fast friends. Fifth grade had all four of them together, and Kravitz had felt like the second pick. They’d still all gotten along and played, but Magnus had been Taako’s _best_ friend, and at the time, Kravitz had felt really sorry for himself about it.  


But Magnus had been a great friend to all of them: the big guy had so much love and warmth to give, and gave and gave it to them all. Kravitz had wanted to hate him, but it was impossible then. Years later, he still couldn’t imagine hating Magnus. The little, envious voice inside of him could find reasons to think Magnus was a threat, but ultimately… he knew that Taako wasn’t trying to replace him.  


Things between he and the elf were still fresh and new, this relationship they were still figuring out wasn’t entirely solid. He’d have to trust Taako a lot more, for this thing to work.  


Kravitz was interrupted in his brooding by the front door opening. Lup had started to nod off against Barry on the couch, but lifted her head to greet Taako.  


Taako took one look at the living room and sighed, “Looks like this party’s already crashed and burned, huh?” Nobody had anything smart to say to that, so he went over to pull his sister off the couch, “Good talk, guys. C’mon, Lulu, let’s get you and Bar’ into bed.”  


Kravitz watched as Taako wrestled the other two out of their clothes and into pajamas, shrugging off any sleepy, drunk protests they put up. He sipped at his drink with something like guilt until Taako closed the door to their bedroom and rounded on him.  


“Good thing you called me, bubala. You’re a mess,” Taako was a little gentler about making him stand up, but still manhandled him a little in getting Kravitz to put his shoes on, “Did you wanna come home with me, or should I take you to your place and tuck you in? We could grab some clothes and shit if you wanna sleep over.”  


Kravitz made a noise that must have meant something to Taako, because the elf nodded and helped him out to Taako’s car. He’d carpooled over with Lup and Barry, not expecting everyone to get that sloshed.  


He must have fallen asleep for a moment, because he remembered putting his seatbelt on, and then he was startled by Taako leaning across him to take the seatbelt back off, and suddenly they were at Kravitz’s apartment.  


“Guess it’s a little easier to tell you this stuff when you might not remember in the morning,” Taako was muttering as he helped Kravitz get his shoes back off once they were inside, “But, um. I was talking to your mom a little while ago. About the orchestra stuff. I want to help you get it going again, and I know I can do it. She said she’d help again, too.”  


“Wh… why would you do that,” Kravitz mumbled, trying to help as Taako got him out of his clothes. He was mostly getting in the way.  


“I, uh,” Taako paused in unbuttoning his shirt, “I want to get you out of this… music… crisis… thing.”  


“So you went… to talk about me with my mom? S’kinda rude.” Kravitz’s head and limbs were feeling too fuzzy and heavy to really get mad, but he still felt a little hurt that they’d go behind his back to discuss him.  


Taako didn’t say anything for a few minutes, other than instructing him to sit up or pick up a leg. Kravitz didn’t remember why he was annoyed anymore, and decided not to be, leaning over to kiss Taako’s face when the elf was close enough to do so. Taako kissed him back and then shook his head with a funny little smile, arranging Kravitz back into bed, “You’re cute. Sleep this off and text me tomorrow, handsome.”  


He watched Taako fish Kravitz’s phone out of his pants pocket and plug it in for him. He loved Taako so much. He was pretty and sometimes he was nice and always he had something to say in that funny voice of his.

  
“You’re my _muuuse,”_ Kravitz mumbled as he rolled over to press his face into a pillow. He didn’t watch Taako for his reaction, because he was already half asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> scatters the seeds of, oh, you know......... ;)
> 
> dont worry guys, we're literally only halfway in. i know you don't know me that well, probably, despite my unnecessarily conversational notes for 20 chapters, but would i do you like that? nah nah nah dont worry
> 
> i mean, do, for sure, but...... ;)
> 
> ps im glad y'all liked raven last chapter. she's good mom. the real reason my mom can't ever read this: not the blowjobs, but the obvious plagiarism of her niceness.
> 
> thank you for your comments and kudos <3


	21. Honeymooning Alone

Magnus opened the door for the third time in the last hour, hoping that whatever dog hadn’t done their business would just actually do it this time. He’d gone out to play with them the second time, hoping to get them primed to just do the dang thing, but now he didn’t bother following them out.  
  


This morning, he had an actual commission, and he had a Taako commission. Even though Taako was paying him for this thing, he tended to think of jobs from friends as more fun and less work, even when they were totally normal things for clients to request him to make.  
  


He let the dogs back in, petting the ones that crowded up for pets, and went back to his workbench to draft up some things.  
  


Taako had left him with what could generously be called  _ concept art,  _ but he’d worked with less than a doodle before. Magnus was very good at wood.  
  


He was going to have to pass off Taako’s second project to Julia, who was way better at metalworking than he was, but she still was doing her afternoon obedience classes for the next two hours.  
  


Magnus got to work, shooing the more excitable pups from the room and letting the sleepier ones stay. He and Julia had what most of their friends would describe as Way Too Many Dogs, but it was really like. Nine. Not even double digits. They also had a single cat, who’d belonged to Julia’s dad before he passed away. The cat was also named Steven like her dad, which was weird, but hey. Magnus liked a cat, too.  
  


He selected an appropriately thick and solid piece of wood from the various shapes and sizes of stockpiled material by the door. He’d have to source another piece just like this one, if he was making two signs, but Taako only needed the one right away.  
  


Magnus was setting up his miter saw to start on the edges when he heard the bell chime out front. His workshop was in a large spare room toward the back of their home, and Julia did her classes in what used to be a spare garage, but had been renovated to be a proper room. They both worked from home, though he’d made nice signs out front to indicate their business. He got up to investigate the bell, avoiding so many wagging and barking dogs as he pushed his way to the front door.  
  


“Merle! You’re early,” he said, because it was true. Luckily, he’d finished Merle’s project a few days back, so it was alright that the dwarf had showed up early, just surprising.  
  


“Is this a bad time?” Merle asked, carefully wading through dogs as Magnus opened the door enough to let him in. A lot of clients chose to stay out on the patio and let Magnus bring the furniture or carving to them.  
  


Magnus shook his head, “No, no no, I’m done. C’mon back. You want some tea?”  
  


“I’ve never said yes when you offered it before, so,” Merle closed the door to the workshop behind them, keeping all but the sleepiest dog (who’d ignored the bell in the first place) out of the room.  
  


“Suit yourself,” Magnus went behind a worktable to recover Merle’s order. He’d wanted a sturdy shelf for some plants, but Magnus had been instructed to make a different looking one than last time. (Was there anything wrong with the ones he’d made before? Apparently not. Merle just liked his furniture to be all mixed up looking.)  
  


Merle let out a whistle, “Aw, that’s just lovely, Mags. Am I gonna be able to get it out to the truck myself?”  
  


“Mm, I’ll help ya on the way out. You might need one of the kids to give you a hand getting it inside. Or, I dunno, maybe you can pick it up.” Magnus wasn’t about to assume he knew anything about Merle’s capacity to carry shit.  
  


His relationship with Merle was… weird. Magnus had been friends with Taako and Lup for most of his childhood, and thus met their dad more than a few times back then. But after he got done with his trade school training and opened up shop, Merle had been an unexpectedly reliable customer. Magnus was pretty sure he talked to Merle more often than his adult children did, which was maybe a little sad, but Merle seemed at peace with that.  
  


Still, hypothetical sore feelings weren’t going to stop Magnus from bringing up his new project, “So I got a new commission from Taako, the other day.”  
  


“No shit? What’s that kid up to?”  
  


“I think he might be opening a second bakery location. He wants a new sign, but like… two of them?” Magnus waved a hand, “It’s all very hush-hush though. Maybe he’s just planning ahead. But also, more importantly: did you hear about Kravitz?”  
  


Merle’s eyebrows knit together like he was trying to remember why he knew that name, “Uhh… that half-elf kid? What about ‘im?”  
  


“Oh shit, you didn’t know about it. Uhh… I’m not sure I’m supposed to tell you, then.”  
  


“Then why’d you bring it up? Come on, spill it.” Merle didn’t have a literal zone of truth, but he had a knack for making you want to tell him the truth anyway. There was something of a staredown, and Magnus could feel himself actively losing it.  
  


“Taako and Kravitz started dating!” Magnus blurted, putting a hand over his mouth afterward like that might put the words back. Belatedly, he realized he’d won that bet with Lup, because this week was his to win. He’d have to gloat later.  
  


Merle had an odd expression on his face, then, and turned to hop up into Magnus’s (made too tall to be comfortable for dwarven legs) chair. It wasn’t exactly a smile, but it also wasn’t mad or sad or anything. Magnus was having trouble discerning what that face meant. It broke from that into a quirk of his lip and the attached moustache.  
  


“Fucking  _ finally,”   _ Merle said, “You would not  _ believe _ how many times that kid wanted to call Kravitz on the house phone back then. Always complaining when I wouldn’t let him hog the phone all day. I'd tell him no but then the dial-up would go out on the computer. I didn’t know how to handle it other than to just let him go over to play.”  
  


Magnus laughed, “Oh man, but that was, what, twenty years ago?”  
  


“Prob’ly,” Merle played with his beard, “So Taako just wanted signs, yeah?”  
  


“Uh- _ huh.”  _ Magnus felt uncomfortable with the tone the old dwarf’s voice had suddenly taken on.  
  


“He didn’t want’cha to make him like, wooden sex toys or anything?”  
  


Magnus blushed,  _ “Gross! What?   _ No, and,” he paused to think about it, “Wouldn’t he have asked for those  _ before   _ he started dating someone, not  _ after _ he did? Think about it, old man!” Magnus shook his head, “Actually, wait, no, also gross, do not think about it. You are horrible.”  
  


“But I bet you woulda made him some if he asked.”  
  


“Is there such a thing as woodworker-client confidentiality?” Magnus asked the dog curled up by his feet. “I feel like I should report you for  _ something.”  _

 

 

* * *

 

 

Magnus made up some sandwiches for lunch after Merle had been convinced to leave, setting paper plates side-by-side at the huge dining room table.  
  


They joked sometimes about training the dogs to come sit at all of the other empty chairs. He'd made it with high hopes of getting all of his friends over for Candlenights, but so far it was just a reminder that he and Julia’s friends didn't come over that often.  
  


Julia joined him after a little bit, standing still when she entered the room to let everyone sniff all of the other-people’s-dogs smells on her pants and hands. She washed her hands and sat down heavily at the table.  
  
  
“Sleepy?”  
  


“Somehow,” she sighed. “We gotta start going to bed earlier, Mags.”  
  
  
He’d already finished his sandwich while he was waiting, so he rubbed her back while she ate, “You could nap? You’ve got a few hours before the next class. Only thing I’ve got for you to work on in the shop is just for Taako, so like. It’s not a rush order.”  
  


“Taako came by?”  
  
  
“Uh-huh. The other night. You were out grocery shopping.”  
  


She hummed and leaned into his side, eyes shutting. He’d carry her up to their bed if she fell asleep on him, just like she did for him when the opposite happened. “Guess he didn’t stay for drinks or anything, if I missed him?”  
  
  
Magnus didn’t answer. Julia knew more than anybody how much Magnus wished someone would pick up a phone and call him. They only ever called for work things lately, and he was happy to help, but he really wanted them to just… stay and hang out longer. (Maybe the dogs were overwhelming? But the puppies would cry if he put them outside or in a separate room too long…)  
  


Still, Magnus was happy to be able to say he  _ had _ friends. It was just. Hard. He guessed it had to be hard to stay in touch, if they were all busy with their own adult lives doing their own adult shit. But when everyone went off to their various post-high-school schools and trainings, he’d been able to still hang out with the twins or Carey or Hurley or Avi all the time.  
  


He’d hoped Taako would let him invite himself over to hang out with Barry and Lup and Kravitz, that time, but no dice. Magnus carefully scooped his lovely, strong wife up and shuffled through wagging tails to lay her down someplace horizontal. Julia was more independent than he was, more alright with their rowdy but mostly-solitary lifestyle.  
  


Magnus wanted to get someone other than Merle to come around for tea or beer or whatever, though he really couldn’t complain too much about Merle’s friendship, weird old dwarf though he was.  
  


He hoped Taako’s whirlwind energies could help rustle up the  _ life  _ in his social life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm so hype for next chapter, for the worst reasons  
> does a fuckin cartwheel  
> you can probably expect a double update today WE'LL SEE... i usually like to post during the day but sometimes, it's past midnight, and i'm impatient as hell, and here we are.
> 
> anyway, yall should help me name mango's dogs. fisher and junior are in the mix, natch, but that's like seven more dogs. maybe johann the dog still exists even though his friend johann is very much alive lmao... ps they're all rescue dogs and probably mostly mutts... like of course... why didn't i say this in the fic? ehh
> 
> thanks for your comments, they fuel me in this trying time of me trying to write the end of this thing <3


	22. Happiness, Missouri

There were perks to being the boss: he’d spent the morning prepping for everyone else, and was going to do paperwork at home after lunch. Taako was going to get so cozy, and also he was going to see his boyfriend _(!!!)_ just as soon as he could get over to him.

Taako had made a nice double-lunch the night before, after asking if he could come by and see Kravitz during the day. They’d carefully timed out when he should show up, because Kravitz’s breaks were ultra-scheduled and specific.

He’d also managed to secure something important, in the last week: Taako had convinced his little step-sister to come and work for him, part-time. Mavis was capable and patient and maybe not so skilled, but willing to learn. She was also old enough to work, and wanted some spending money. Taako was happy to let someone else take a few hours here and there. People usually couldn’t really tell the difference between, say, Ren’s baking and his, because Ren was using his recipes, and was also pretty fucking good at baking. Sales would be fine even if he wasn’t around every single day, overseeing every single project. Taako was absolutely going to let her take over one hypothetical second location, once it existed.

Wave Echo Music was not pretty. He hadn’t ever been here before, but it looked like the kind of store that didn’t deserve to stand on its own, and should probably just be in a strip mall. Taako parked right up near the entrance, noting Kravitz’s car courteously parked in a distant corner of the lot.

He wasn’t dressed up super cute or anything, since he’d just come from work, but Taako did make time for eyeliner that morning, and had properly brushed his hair instead of just shoving it into a hair net as-is. This wasn’t technically a date, this was just a quick meal with his handsome boy.

Taako pushed open the door of the shop and glanced around, spying zero customers in the open space. He liked the sparkling black floor, but that was about it. The place looked like it was one blacklight away from being a laser tag arena, mostly dark and weirdly humid. That seemed like a bad idea, for instruments, but what did Taako know?

Kravitz was behind the register, and Taako walked up to lean on the counter, “So I know y’all sell music here, but do you sell musicians?” He waggled his eyebrows until Kravitz laughed, and they went to eat in the little backroom, kicking the teen who’d been on break back onto the register.

“You’re a sight for sore eyes,” Kravitz said, and it made Taako just _have to_ kiss him. They kept it super brief, because there was no doubt a camera back here, and neither of them wanted Kravitz’s grouchy boss watching them make out.

“You’re not so bad, yourself.” Taako started unpacking the lunch he’d made onto the little table. He’d kept it simple, all finger-food slices of cheese and meat and fruit, and then had grabbed a smallish loaf of french bread from the bakery to share. Kravitz sheepishly provided the drinks, courtesy of a vending machine in the corner of the room.

They ate and exchanged some customer stories from the last day or so, not the kind of thing they’d necessarily bother to send a message about, and when they got to dessert (one big slice of cake to share), Taako decided to _try_ and lightly brush over the topic that he’d had on his mind for a few weeks, now. The plan was absolutely a flawed one, and he knew it, but heavy stuff was hard and he wasn’t good at it. His thought was that he should just force it out quick, like a fantasy band-aid.

“Heh, you should just let me be your sugar daddy,” he had to time the joke just right, for when Kravitz’s face was all blissed out from good-cake-taste, “Quit this dumb job and let me take care of you, all of that.”

Kravitz frowned a little, instead of laughing, but kept eating cake and didn’t tell Taako to fuck off or anything. Good sign?

“This is my job, though.” Maybe not good sign.

“You could be doing a so much more, doing fun things. Or doing nothing at all. I’m making enough to support you, if you wanted to stay home and write music or something.” Taako realized that he’d immediately failed to keep things light and breezy, but powered through, “This place is sucking you dry, and you’re not getting anything out of it.”

Kravitz got a weird look on his face, shorter ears twitching back like he was annoyed, but his eyebrows didn’t match. Taako felt his own ears tuck down, and decided to back off. He didn’t want Kravitz to get mad at him for being pushy about this stuff, and he was pretty sure he’d only gotten away with the scheming-with-Raven thing because Kravitz had been drunk, and probably forgot.

“I don’t…” Taako made himself raise his gaze from the almost finished cake to look, when Kravitz finally stopped working his jaw and started talking, “I don’t want to sit at home and do nothing. I’d feel useless.”

He wasn’t sure how to convey what he meant by all of this without making Kravitz feel worse, “I don’t want that,” Taako started, even though he was sure that should be obvious. “I want,” he bit his lip, “I want you to enjoy what you do. And I want to help you like you’re helping me.”

Kravitz looked lost.

“Like, you’re helping me by making me happy, obviously, but it’s more than that. Even without the jingle being done,” he ignored how Kravitz winced, “Even without that, did you know my views kicked up by a not insignificant margin when I started talking to the audience like I was talking to you? You’re so great, and like, you inspire me and stuff. You’re helping me in ways you probably don’t realize you’re helping.”

Kravitz still had an unreadable expression on his face, and started packing up the lunch supplies as Taako watched. He knew he was being nosey, maybe pushing too far, but Taako didn’t do this stuff. He didn’t know how to be more delicate.

Kravitz finished packing up the little bag Taako had carried everything in, in, and said, finally, “I should get back to work. We… we can finish this conversation later. Don’t worry, I’m not mad, just.” Taako realized he’d stood up when Kravitz started walking him out the backroom door, and then toward the front door, saying, “Bye, see you later, I love you.”

And then Taako was outside and Kravitz was inside and walking back to the register like he hadn’t just dropped a goddamn bomb on Taako’s head.  


 

* * *

 

 

He was barely able to make it home without calling Lup or calling Kravitz or calling literally anyone who would listen. Taako’s ears were burning and he wanted to cry but he wasn’t sure if he was happy or sad or confused (well, he was definitely the last one, but was that _why_ his eyes were pricking?)

Taako threw the lunch bag onto the counter and his paperwork bag onto the coffee table and went to his room to pull off his clothes and take a very hot shower.

Kravitz loved him?

Liked, Taako understood, maybe. He liked Kravitz a lot, he’d liked him for so long, and like… there were a lot of parts that he might use the word _love_ to describe, but he wasn’t sure he was comfortable saying… that that word was how he felt. Full stop.

But Kravitz _loved him?_

Or maybe he’d just said it without thinking, and not meant it, and would tell him later that he’d made a mistake. And he’d tell Taako that this was all a mistake and he’d leave and Taako would be alone again.

At least Kravitz was a good, actually good, person. There wouldn’t be any crazy mind games after they’d broken up, he wouldn’t show up at Taako’s house and expect to hook up, or send him mean messages. Taako had been through that shit with Sazed and had had his fill of it, but he knew Kravitz wouldn’t be anything like that. They’d probably just go back to never talking, but with the caveat that they never would talk again.

He realized that he was crying, but at least this time he had the excuse of the shower to explain how he hadn’t noticed. Taako let himself get out all the pent up stress and worry, or as much as he could, and cleaned himself off. He got out and into his most comfortable, oversized clothes. He texted Lup in spite of himself.

Maybe Kravitz meant it and really loved him, and things might not go horribly wrong, but it was still so scary to think about. Taako pulled out a half-empty bottle of vodka and sat down on the couch to work on his paperwork. Maybe he could just… not think about this right now, if he distracted himself hard enough.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yoooooooooooooo _ooooooo_
> 
> i've never written a CONFLICT before  
> taako's plan is going well for him, it doesn't seem
> 
> honestly when i got to writing this part was when i was like.. fuck it im gonna post daily because if i don't.. it'll take so long to get to this stuff like.. dang.....  
> anyway have a nice evening (SORRY?) and we'll address this tomorrow <3


	23. I Should Live in Salt

He went straight home after work, feeling tired and a little annoyed. Kravitz was mad at himself for being cold with Taako at lunch, and his frustrations simmered for the rest of his shift. His phone chimed a couple of times while he was driving home, and he checked them once he was parked. It wasn’t a group chat, but he almost wished it were one, so he wouldn’t have so many different messages marked unread.

18:38  
Lup: _Hey congrats krav!! Good job_

Sloane: _i don’t hear from you for weeks and then this? holy shit._

Magnus: _DUDE!!!_

Johann: _i’m not sure why i got texted about this but congrats i guess?_

Barry: _Heard about what happened. Good for you, buddy._

Barry. Barry would know and maybe actually explain to him what was going on, and why he had a million texts like this. If this was just about him being in a relationship in the first place, the timing felt really strange. And how would _Johann_ have heard about that, anyway?

Kravitz: _Barry, what’s happened? I got a lot of messages congratulating me and I’m not sure why._

Barry: _Uh. Huh._

Kravitz: _Barry._

Barry: _Well, okay, maybe we got some bad intel. Lup said that Taako said that you said that you love him. Guess that one’s on Lup, if she goofed up whatever Taako actually meant? She’s the one who told everyone else._

Barry: _She’s still frantically texting people right now, do you want me to stop her?_

Kravitz sat down heavily on the couch, setting his phone face down and resting his head in his hands.

Had he said that…? Maybe when he’d been saying goodbye? When he tried to think back to that instant, he absolutely could hear himself saying those three huge words, with none of the gravity that they deserved. None of the weight he should have put on them, when he finally said them. He'd had these grand ideas of sweeping gestures, of something romantic, of waiting _at least_ a few more months.

Kravitz went to change his clothes and think about this. Was he… ready to own it? To confess that he really did _love_ Taako? They’d only been dating, properly dating, for weeks. A month. In any other relationship, that would be beyond insane. Even now it felt like a crazy thing to have let slip, even though it was true. He hadn’t even been ready to admit it, fully, to himself yet, and here he’d said it to Taako in passing, after shutting down on the elf and kicking him out of his workplace.

He felt sick when he realized how that must have seemed to Taako.

Kravitz didn’t bother answering Barry, going straight for the phone icon and calling Taako. He needed to know how the elf was, how Taako was reacting to this. Was he happy? He'd texted Lup. If he was happy, if he was doing good upon hearing those three words in the stupidest way, it wouldn't be such a bad thing. Taako could know that he loved him, and it would be just fine.

He got voicemail the first time the call went through. He didn't leave a message, just redialing. The second time, Taako picked up, and they both soaked up an uncomfortable silence for a moment.

“Are you alright?” He finally asked, feeling small, because he guessed that no, Taako hadn't taken this and run in a good direction. He waited.

Taako hiccuped into the phone and didn’t say anything for seconds that felt like minutes. It felt like hours. He said, _“I’ve been better.”_

“Can I come over? I want to see you,” Kravitz said. What he didn’t say is _I want to apologize_ and _I want to hold you_ and _You deserved a better confession than that._ All that mattered was fixing this, what he'd messed up. Whatever part of it had Taako upset, be it his shutting down at lunch, be it the part where he ruined what should have been a beautiful memory, be it that Taako didn't love him back and was upset about potentially breaking up with him. Whatever it was, he needed to be present to fix it.

 _“Um. S-sure.”_   Taako sniffed, _“You want dinner?”_ Kravitz's throat tightened when he thought about how Taako, even now, wanted to feed him. Thought he had to do that.

“I’ll figure out dinner,” Kravitz reassured him, not sure what he was going to do, but not wanting Taako to feel like he had to cook something for them, “I’ll be there in fifteen.”

_“Okay.”_

The drive should have taken fifteen, but he made it there faster than was safe, knocking on the door and standing outside to wait. He could have probably walked right in, the door probably wasn’t even locked, but barging into Taako’s space when he sounded upset seemed like a bad way to start.

The door opened enough to let him in, but Taako was hiding behind it. Kravitz stepped inside and took in the sight of the elf. His ears were down and back and he did not look very happy. His hair was still a little wet, tangled and unbrushed after a shower. The clothes he had on swallowed him up. When the door closed beside them, Kravitz opened his arms tentatively. Taako didn't even seem to think before he inserted himself into his arms, and Kravitz held him close.

“I’m so sorry if I made you upset, Taako,” he murmured into Taako’s hair.

Taako shook his head and pressed close to his chest, “M’just overreacting.” Taako's hands weren't reaching around to return the hug, but balled up in Kravitz's shirt.

“Whatever you're feeling, you're allowed to feel it,” Kravitz carefully lead them back toward the couch and let Taako drag him down. Kravitz crouched beside Taako’s head, on the floor, as the elf curled up sideways on the couch, and they sat there for several minutes while Taako calmed down a little. Taako started to say something a few different times, and had to stop and pull himself together. It had to be frustrating to not be able to talk without breaking down, but the bottle of vodka nearby explained why his boyfriend was a little easier to fall apart. Kravitz held on to both of Taako's hands, and gave them what he hoped was a comforting squeeze.

Taako cleared his throat to get Kravitz’s attention, like he didn’t have it already.

“Did you mean what you said?”

And Kravitz had been thinking about this for what felt like ages, from the drive over, to running up the house, to looking at Taako, to now. So he said, “Of course I did.”

“Th-then why do I feel so bad? I’m… I should be happy, damnit,” Taako fussed, hiding his face behind their joined hands.

“I don’t know,” Kravitz admitted gently, and then steeled himself. Taako was already drunk and sad, but he needed to say his piece. “Taako, I want to let you help me with my work, but you’re trying to change things too much, too fast, and… you didn’t even ask me, love. You didn’t ask if I wanted the help. Maybe I do want it, but I can’t just let you do everything for me. It won’t happen overnight.”

“But it _could,_ Krav,” Taako blustered, “I did research and, um, I know neither of us has a fuckin' marketing degree but I _know_ I could help you make a good website, and, and… I just wanted to help. I want you to be doing somethin' that makes _you_ happy.” His voice had gotten smaller and smaller as he deflated, and Kravitz let go with one hand so that he could reach out and pet his hair.

Taako seemed to gather himself up again after a minute, and Kravitz pushed the hair out of his face as Taako asked, “H-how long? How long have you loved me? Like… like a week, or?”

And Kravitz could see him tearing up again, and feel himself getting a little misty, as he answered gently, “Pretty much all along, Taako.”

Taako pulled at him, then, until Kravitz was alongside him on the couch, pressed as close as they could be, and cried himself out while Kravitz held onto him. There was a part of him that was scared, of laying himself bare and telling this truth when the edges of things felt jagged and it was his problems that had put them here, squashed together on Taako’s couch.

He wanted what Taako wanted him to do, was the thing. He wanted to quit. He wanted to work on his own music, on his group’s performances, on Taako’s jingle. He wanted to be done just floating along in his own life, at a dead-end job. Taako might have pushed too fast, but he wasn’t actually  _wrong._ Kravitz wasn’t going to be happy, even with the love of his life in his arms, if he kept making himself spend his days doing something he hated.

In the morning, they could deal with that. They hadn’t had dinner, either. But Kravitz wouldn't dream of moving from this couch until Taako asked him to.

They fell asleep there after a while.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> don't do paperwork when you're sad and drunk, by the way
> 
> there's still a lot to unpack here, of course, but lol i'm not yet capable of holding onto that kind of tension for very long. hopefully this feels ok.
> 
> i'm working on chapter 39 now and man. writing is hard when you actually care, huh?
> 
> i'd meant to wait later in the day to post, but. anyway. have a good rest of your day!! thank you for the comments and kudos and support. i love y'all.


	24. Too Too Too Fast

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> if you're skipping M-adjacent stuff, stop when you hit "Taako and Lup would've killed for that."

At three in the morning, Taako woke up sore and starving and overwarm on his couch, with Kravitz snoozing and looking soft in his arms. His eyes felt puffy, and he was definitely dehydrated, but all things considered… he’d woken up to worse situations. He gently roused Kravitz, and they worked together to get undressed and drink some water and set alarms before crawling into bed. It took Taako a minute of laying there to remember why they’d been like that at all, and it was almost enough to keep him awake, thinking. He watched Kravitz breathe and suddenly wondered why this had felt hard at all.

 _Kravitz loved him._ He… wasn’t sure he could let himself think those words in kind, but could see himself wanting to, could imagine himself enjoying that concept. The idea of being in love.

In the morning, Taako turned off their dueling phone alarms and inserted himself into Kravitz’s arms, looking through his feeds while his boyfriend _(who loved him)_ slowly woke up and tucked Taako’s shoulder under his chin. Taako telegraphed this action slowly as he swapped over to fantasy Facebook and went to update his relationship status. They hadn’t done that yet, and it seemed dumb to have waited but they’d been cautious, before...Taako thought that they were probably beyond that, now, and pointedly tapped _Confirm_ while Kravitz watched over his shoulder.

He set his phone down and wriggled around to face Kravitz, kissing his nose, “So... what’s the plan, loverboy?”

Kravitz snorted and leaned in to kiss him properly, and Taako kissed back contentedly. He was definitely not feeling _physically_ great after the vodka and crying and not having dinner and sleeping on the couch for hours, but Taako still did want kisses.

“I guess I should put in my two weeks?” Kravitz ventured, when they parted, looking determined. Taako nosed at his jawline encouragingly.

“Thanks for trusting me,” he hummed, trying to tone down the part of him that wanted to gloat or cheer or lord something over Kravitz, the part that wanted to be right about this.

“Gundren will probably fire me early, instead of letting me work those weeks,” Kravitz warned, and Taako got the impression that Kravitz knew his boss pretty well.

“S’okay. We got work to do.”

“Are you going in to the bakery?” Kravitz asked.

“Oooh, I didn’t tell you,” Taako smiled into Kravitz's neck, “Mavis is helping her big bro out by picking up some shifts for me. She’s being supervised by Ren, but… I'd already kinda planned on taking some time off to help you. Is that okay?”

Kravitz nodded into his hair, but Taako couldn’t see his face to guess what he was thinking.

“So… how about you work on your letter, and I’ll start putting together a website for you. You can help when you’re done,” Taako did not mention Kravitz’s terrifying graphic design sense, because today was, officially, a Constructive Day. You couldn't be down on yourself on a Constructive day. He’d had some of these in culinary school, but he’d had a lot more of them when it came time to file paperwork for his food and business licenses and whatnot. He needed Constructive Days when it was time to do taxes or retrieve forms for Ren and Joaquin, too. No shame in just forcing yourself to do work that sucked. It was like Magic Day, but with way less fun and infinitely less magic.

They got dressed, Kravitz putting back on his pants from the day before (and miraculously, stealing back his plaid button down - Taako would have to take it back again at a later date). Taako switched to bike shorts and a tank top, feeling like he needed to be less cozy and more aware. They made toast and omelettes, and Taako let Kravitz do most of the veggie stuff. Maybe he could trust the boy to do the egg part, too, but Taako wasn’t sure he was ready for _that_ level of commitment. His stomach was rebelling enough after his dinner of just straight vodka, burnt eggs would've been a tough sell.

Kravitz didn’t seem eager to start writing his letter, but Taako sat down beside him at the kitchen table with his laptop out, and made a show of going to a website that’d help you make a website (fantasy Squarespace, natch). Productivity feeds productivity, and all that. Soon Kravitz had his letter written and Taako rustled up an envelope from his desk.

They went to Wave Echo to pass it off to Gundren, and the dwarf might as well have burst into flames, for how quickly his temper exploded. Kravitz had been right about getting fired on the spot, but Taako was _pretty fucking okay_ with his boyfriend not having to go back there again. It wasn’t like that was the only music store in town, so if he needed anything, it wasn’t like he couldn’t just… go somewhere else.

Taako offered to drive them back, squeezing Kravitz’s knee for comfort as they pulled away from the place that had been holding the half-elf back.

When they got back to working on the website, Kravitz helped pick out some colors and fonts he thought were evocative of _orchestra_ , and Taako supplied him with some basic color theory and also vetoed a Black-Brown-White color scheme. Taako helped Kravitz set up the various social media pages that were actually necessary, and let him write info and invite the people who usually turned up for practice.

Taako pulled it up on his phone as soon as the page was live and made a point of being the first to follow and like it. Kravitz laughed at him and pulled him into a sweet kiss.

Kravitz rested his chin in his hand. “I suppose we still have to research the local venues, see if we can’t get a small concert series going. Maybe reach out to the next city over…” Taako watched Kravitz’s general enthusiasm level go up as they worked on all of the little things they could to make this feel _real._

By evening, everything felt a lot less fragile. A lot of the musicians who’d been with Kravitz for years had already messaged him with support and enthusiasm, and Taako had gotten a message from Lup, who apologized for spreading those messages the night before. She’d just been excited for him. Apparently she didn't think that calling or texting him for confirmation about shit was very important, but. It was the kind of mistake he could see himself making, so she was forgiven. He didn't want to imagine how the night before might have gone without her accidental intervention.

Taako’s phone went off again after he was pretty sure he was done talking to Lup.

17:45  
Raven: _Taako! I take it things went well? I got invited to like a new page for the orchestra. :) Let me know if you boys need anything. Istus an (1/2)_

Raven: _d I are excited to see you two this weekend. Tell Kravitz to check his messages for me? Love, Raven (2/2)_

  
“Your mom wants us to come to dinner,” Taako leaned into his boyfriend.

  
“I saw. Do you want to go?”  
  


Taako nodded enthusiastically, “It’ll be weird as heck, but like... I love your mom. And I want to meet Istus. _And_ I want to go fool around in your old room.” Taako laughed at the face Kravitz made. “Only a little bit kidding.”  
  


“I get the feeling you weren't kidding at all, actually.”

   
  


* * *

   
  


After the dinner and a thin excuse of _just wanting to go feel nostalgic and ‘hang out’_ up in Kravitz’s room, Taako was locking the door, leaning back against it and grinning. “You had a lock on your door that whole time, growing up?” Even sharing a room, Taako and Lup would've killed for that.

Kravitz was on him in an instant, nosing at Taako’s hair and ears and hands going to untuck Taako’s shirt, “Mm, not til I was a teenager, weirdly enough. I think she thought I’d want privacy.”

“I’m guessing she wasn’t wrong,” Taako purred, helping Kravitz in getting his pants down. They had a locked door, but also didn’t want to be totally obvious by taking an hour up in his room with a locked door. Their unspoken, shared first priority was getting Taako naked.

Taako grabbed Kravitz’s collar to reel him in for an actual kiss, moaning as one of Kravitz’s thighs pushed up against his still underwear-covered dick. He hadn't been one hundred percent ready to go, but the thrill of messing around _here_ with Kravitz’s parents _downstairs_ was getting Taako there, for fuckin’ sure. That fear of discovery wasn't something he'd realized he was into. He rolled his hips to grind against Kravitz’s leg and whined when Kravitz started to pull away too soon, “Baaabe.”

“Cover your mouth,” Kravitz raised a finger to his lips before sinking to his knees.  
  
Afterward, when they’d both come and Taako wouldn’t, _couldn't_ stop giggling about how loud he’d shrieked, Kravitz got this funny look on his face like he was going to scold Taako or something. He seemed to think better of it when Taako kissed him again and said, “In my defense, you never said I couldn’t also put my fingers _in_ my  mouth. It was technically covered. Just, okay, not super well.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hopefully this one isn't emotional or tonal whiplash after the last few haha... we got places to BE  
> sorry i didn't actually do the dinner with raven and istus you guys can imagine. it was just a nice ol' time.
> 
> also, for clarification, taako's "plan" was literally just to make krav quit his job try again but do better, hahaha
> 
> maybe a double update on this, the last day of february? let me live. and by that i mean. accept that i wanna post like a lot.
> 
> anyway still trucking along with chapter 39 and fuckkk that stuff's gonna get rewritten a few times before we actually get there... like it's rough, folks. so many ends that werent even that loose but im tying them anyway, fuck.
> 
> HAVE NICE NIGHT, and tomorrow day, i love you.


	25. Here Before

A few days later, Kravitz was feeling tentatively positive about the odds of the work thing working. It was early to think that, but the pages they’d put up had gotten a good number of hits and likes and follows. Most of his musicians had gotten back to him to confirm that they were open to the idea of doing some paid gigs for an audience, and he was mostly sure that they could handle that.

He went to the bakery to visit Taako and maybe try to snag a cupcake, and was greeted by a cheerful Ren. They hadn’t met more than once or twice, since he and Taako’d started dating, but Ren was friendly and helpful in ways that Kravitz couldn’t help but appreciate. She was capable of running this whole place, and Taako knew that and trusted her to when he couldn’t be there.

“Kravitz!” Taako appeared at the open door to the back, hands in the air so he wouldn’t get pink icing on anything, “C’mon back, baby.” Kravitz smiled apologetically as Ren lifted open the section of counter that separated customers from employees to let him in.

He took a seat on the stool Taako pointed at and held his hands in his lap, feeling like it probably wasn’t sanitary for him to touch anything back here.

“So I was thinking,” Taako said, picking back up the pink icing bag he’d been piping with, “Y’know how we went and were all cute in front of your family.”

“Mmhm,” Kravitz nodded, still feeling sure that his mother and step-mother _definitely_ knew what they’d gotten up to in his room. He was never going to ask, though, because he’d have to pack his bags and move away if he got confirmation.

“We should probably go and be public for people on my side of things, too, is all. I mean... it’s not like I wanna see them, don’t get it twisted. This is for their benefit.”

“Lup already knows pretty much everything, though, right?” Kravitz reached for one of the cupcakes Taako’d just finished, a very slow reach so that he could be told _no_ if Taako didn’t want him to take it. He took it without interruption.

Taako’s lip quirked up as Kravitz tore into the treat, “Right, Lup knows, Barry knows. But does _Mookie_ know? If you’re gonna be serious about loving me, I’m gonna need everyone to remember how much they love you. Kid siblings and weird dads regrettably included.”

Another cupcake and a goodbye kiss that somehow got icing into his hair left Kravitz feeling pretty positive about this get-together, too.

 

* * *

 

 

Mid-afternoon, days later, had him picking up Taako for the short drive out to Merle’s house. The dwarf didn’t live especially far away, just hidden in one of those neighborhoods that was tucked away behind trees. The big yard was more overgrown than Kravitz remembered, bigger and wilder hedges and trees than the last time Kravitz had been here. Back then, he would’ve gotten dropped off by his mother or had a note to take Taako and Lup’s bus home, rather than drive there himself.

Taako was dressed in a soft and comfortable-looking ensemble for the pleasant weather, and Kravitz told him it was cute as they stepped out of the car. “I don’t see you in florals much,” he accepted a mystery freezer bag handed to him from the trunk, “But they suit you. Trying to butter up Merle for something?”

Kravitz shut the trunk and offered to take another bag from the elf, Taako leaned up to kiss his cheek in thanks, “I don’t need to impress my dad, dude.” Taako led the way down the little stone path to the front door, “Something about being here, um… I dunno, reminds me that nature is nice? That flowers are pretty?”

“Hmmmm, _you’re_ pretty.” Kravitz followed Taako up the steps to the patio, which was entirely taken up with huge potted plants. There wasn’t room to do much more than walk to the front door.

“That’s gay, babe.”

“Guilty as charged.”

Since they were expected, Taako didn’t pause before just opening the front door, and Kravitz took in the way the house had changed after the twins left it. He remembered most of the furniture, and the colors on the walls were the same, but now there was a lot fewer kid-friendly toys and decorations. Since Mookie was a preteen, now, it made sense that the house was finally going to grow up with him.

Taako seemed to be in a hurry to drop off their bags in the kitchen, and Kravitz laughed when he realized why: Mookie wasn’t necessarily a fireball at this point, but he was still running to greet them, and didn’t pause before throwing his arms around Taako’s waist and his weight fully against Taako’s body.

“Taako! Taako! You’re here!”

“Yup! You gonna help me cook in a bit, muffin?”

“Oh, can I?!”

Taako nodded and ruffled his hair, “For sure! Where’s everyone else, Mooks?”

“Daddy’s in the backyard and Mave’s upstairs and Dav’s out back with Daddy and Mom ain’t comin’ ‘cuz she's busy and Lup’n’Barry called and said they’d be late and I’m right here!” He said this all in one breath and Kravitz found himself clapping, impressed.

“Why don’t you go tell Dad we’re here, we’ll go say hi in a minute.”

“Okay!!”

Kravitz waited for the sound of the back door slamming before stage-whispering, “Dav?”

“Davenport? Don’t tell me you didn’t know about that? Kravitz,” Taako’s eyes were lighting up like something was _hilarious_ but all Kravitz felt was shock.

“Mr. Davenport? Like our club sponsor? Why… oh. Wow. Huh.”

Taako snorted and started unpacking the various bags. Mostly, they were pots and pans that he’d wanted to use, but the freezer bag had some pre-prepared foodstuff inside. Lugging kitchenware around wasn’t something Kravitz would normally support, but he totally understood Taako wanting familiar and good materials for this large meal.

He did not understand, however, how Taako’s dad was (presumably) dating their old Elvish teacher. Kravitz had taken the class for his second language, and their friends had somehow convinced Davenport to sponsor the Starblaster Club (an obviously-bullshit excuse to hang out after school) from sophomore year on. He knew this gnome. He couldn’t imagine what he saw in Merle, but he’d never known Davenport to do anything he didn’t want to do.

“Yep, it’s _pre-etty_ gross,” Taako shook his head, shoving some stuff in the fridge aside to make room for food he’d brought.

Kravitz nodded helplessly, opening and closing his hands as he itched for something to do. Taako rescued him by finishing his unpacking, linking their arms and leading him to the back door. The whole house felt so much smaller than the last time he’d been here. The furniture was mostly dwarf-sized, which had been perfect for children. He’d have to watch how his friends sat to figure out how to position his legs under the table…

He spotted Davenport, first, sitting on a low bench with a book in hand. Barefoot. This was weird, like some bizarro alternate reality. Taako dragged him closer, and Kravitz held up a hand to wave a little when Davenport noticed them and set his book aside.

“Afternoon, you two.” Davenport hopped up and extended a hand for Kravitz to lean down and shake, “It’s been a bit, Kravitz.”

He felt Taako kiss his cheek and leave his side to wander off to find Merle, breezy sundress flaring out.

“I didn’t realize you were… involved, with Merle. Congratulations?” Kravitz relaxed a little when Davenport laughed.

“Oh, it’s not really new. He and Hecuba haven’t lived together for years, and, well. Sometimes you don’t choose who you fall for, y’know?”

Kravitz turned to see Taako hoisting a shirtless Merle into the air on the other side of some bushes, shrieking something incoherent at him.

“I definitely know,” he said seriously, and they shared a chuckle as he sat down for a surprisingly comfortable catch-up with the gnome. Mookie had run inside a few minutes prior to Mavis primly walking out. She sat beside them with a book of her own after politely introducing herself to Kravitz. She probably knew who he was from Taako’s having hired her, recently, but it was funny to treat it like this was the first time they’d met. He’d definitely known her for a couple of years when she was tiny. They’d gotten along then, because he was one of Taako’s only not-loud friends and she’d been quiet, too. Mavis wouldn’t remember any of that, though.

“Thank you, by the way, Mavis,” he said watching Taako corral Mookie back inside again. He’d started to get up but been reassured that Taako and Mookie could totally handle making dinner without his help, despite Lup being late. Kravitz would normally not be concerned about Taako’s ability to put together a meal, but Mookie was an unknown quantity.

“For?” Mavis asked, glancing up at him from her book to indicate that she was paying attention.

“Your help with the bakery. Taako’s been helping me get my work situation… back on its feet, and he wouldn’t be able to help me without you.”

She waved a hand, “It’s fine. Dad didn’t want me getting a job, but he couldn’t really veto it if it was just working for Taako.” Mavis turned back to her book, “Besides, he pays _more_ than minimum wage.”

“That’s reason enough,” Kravitz hummed. He felt left out with nothing but his phone to read, so despite the nice weather he got up to join Taako back inside. Merle hadn’t come over to say hello, while he’d been outside, but they’d all be together for dinner eventually.

He’d half-expected the kitchen to be a battlefield when he arrived, but things were surprisingly chill. Taako was giving Mookie easy and direct tasks to keep him busy, while doing anything complicated himself. Kravitz tried not to feel embarrassed about how he and a twelve year old got about the same level of responsibility in Taako’s kitchen.

“Got bored out there with the nerd squad, Hot Nerd?” Taako asked without taking his eyes off of what he was doing.

“If I’d known we were having a nerd squad meeting, I might have brought a book,” Kravitz stood out of the way to watch Taako work. He’d occasionally pause and redirect Mookie’s potato-mashing or strawberry slicing, but the kid seemed to thrive with some responsibility on his plate. Kravitz was honestly pretty impressed at how well Taako handled the fidgety dwarf, but it made sense that he’d be able to. The twins might have been out of the house more often than not since Mookie was born, but they were still his older siblings, in a sense.

Eventually Kravitz took a seat at the table and played on his phone again, ready to help if anybody asked him to. Caught up on the phone games he hadn’t played as religiously since rekindling a dialogue with Taako. He looked up when the front door opened and closed, and Lup and Barry joined them in the kitchen with apologies for not being there sooner. Taako waved at the three adults in the room and requested that they set the table. Kravitz was eager to do something useful, even if it only took a couple of minutes to arrange everything.

Taako’s apron was a little messy as he took it off, and Kravitz folded it up for him into one of their bags while Mookie ran off to call Merle and Davenport and Mavis inside for dinner.

It was fun.

He knew everyone here _fairly_ well, and the kids were easy enough to get along with. Easier now that Lup and Taako had their full attention on eating and talking. Kravitz felt a pang of longing for the concept of _siblings_ but shrugged it off easily in the warmth of Merle’s home. It was cozy. Most of the newer furniture, while short, was clearly related to Taako’s, and so probably made by Magnus. It was a shame to have a tablecloth hiding such a beautiful table.

Davenport spoke up after everybody calmed down from a horrible joke Merle’d just finished telling, addressing the four young adults, “Are you all going to the reunion next month? The school should’ve sent out invites a little while back, but I’m not privy any of the RSVP information.”

“Huh,” Taako looked like he’d forgotten about the concept of a ten-year high school reunion entirely, “Hadn’t thought about it. I’m kinda crushing it, though, so, like, I’ll prolly go. Show up all like... _Bet’cha thought cha’boy didn’t have time for this shit, and that’s right, he’s above all’a y’all._ ”

Barry and Lup both shrugged a few times gave generally positive but not-particularly-interested answers, because they were both grown ups who knew how to fake being a grown up. They were also a little more sociable, so maybe it didn't seem too special an event?

And then, all eyes were on Kravitz.

“I’d like to go,” Kravitz said, and then took a sip of his drink to give himself a second to think about his next words, “But I’d rather not show up in front of our peers and friends jobless.” He obviously hadn’t been to a high school reunion, but all of the movies and shows always portrayed it as some event where you told people about your job and you family and your success. He only really had one of those.

“Well,” Taako said, wrapping an arm around Kravitz’s waist from the next chair over, “We’ll just have to make sure you have a proper gig again by then, huh? I ain’t going without my super handsome boyfriend there to coordinate looks with.”

“Somehow, I still kinda thought you guys were joking about being a couple,” Merle said aloud, not looking at anybody in particular. He looked weirdly soft when he said it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> a longer one! just for you!!! (yes you.)  
> with surprise special guest davenport. in this reality, imagine Elvish class as like Latin class. it's a dead language, but you can still take it in school. there's a Wordless One and Dead Language joke in here somewhere but i failed to make it, lol. anyway yeah so imagine they're all basically latin nerds in HS, going to state competitions for the JEL (junior elvish league).
> 
> the real question, tho: what's the fantasy version of anime club.
> 
> thanks, as always, for the kind words and kudos. 250! like holy shit! yeehaw!!!
> 
> i'm thinking (don't hold me to this) but i'm thinking about illustrating the last few chapters, once i'm done writing them. i've drawn like my whole life, and my job is drawing, but it'll be nice to stretch my legs with something like that. there's also a lot of characters in those ones so it'll be fun. we'll see.  
> (i've been keeping the descriptive traits minimal intentionally, beyond vague hair texture/length things or species-related traits... kind of in the adventure zone tradition of letting you fill in the gaps, so that's maybe the only reason i'm hesitant. i don't want you to get to the end and be like aw man, that's what your taako looks like? lol)
> 
> ok you're free, i free you from reading this. see you tomorrowwww


	26. Folk Hero Schtick

Magnus had offered to come by and help install the new sign for Taako, but he’d been asked to just deliver everything to Taako’s house instead. So here he was, parked at the end of the driveway, behind what was probably Kravitz’s car.

Magnus liked Kravitz, and they’d been friends for years, but in that way that two people have a lot of mutual friends and don’t always talk to each other directly. They had at one point, because of course they had, and of course they’d gone to some of the same parties as adults, but Magnus wasn’t really sure how he was supposed to approach this.

So instead of overthinking this delivery to a friend, for another friend, and those friends were dating each other… thing, he rang the doorbell with the wrapped signage over one shoulder, and the secret project that Kravitz wasn’t supposed to know about (shit!) under his other arm.

There was still time to just leave everything on the porch and run off, but Magnus reminded himself that he was strong and brave and also this was one of his fucking _friends,_ not some dude he had to fight.

Kravitz opened the door dressed in a soft-looking v-neck and pajama pants, with super pink fuzzy socks that drew Magnus’s gaze downward.

“Oh, uh, hey. Can I help you, Magnus?” Kravitz asked, looking baffled by the packages.

“I, yeah, sorry. I would’ve texted you ahead of time if I’d known you were gonna be here. Taako ordered this stuff...” he said, and wondered if there was even a free wall inside for him to prop these things up on. At least everything was treated to be alright outside, so they could stay out, but he didn’t want somebody to come along and take this shit he’d been working on for a week.

“Huh. Yeah, he didn’t tell me you were coming, either,” and they shared a look that put Magnus at ease, because it was the familiar look of _Cool, t_ _hanks_ _Taako_.

“Can I bring these in?” Magnus asked, shifting the stuff over his arm. It wasn’t heavy, not for him anyway, but standing in the doorway was not ideal.

“Right! Sure, of course.” Kravitz shuffled out of the way to let him in smoothly. Sometimes it felt weird to walk into someone’s house and not be mobbed by three or more dogs.

He wandered in to find a spot to set down the signs, deciding that it probably wasn’t _Kravitz’s_ fault that there weren’t any coasters in sight for any of the goodass furniture he’d built. That’d make a good, if passive-aggressive Candlenights present: a _fuckton_ of coasters for Taako.

“Could I see what you made?” Kravitz asked, leaning against the back of the couch, “I have to say, I’m pretty curious about it. There’s not a lot of room for more furniture in here, besides maybe the spare bedroom.”

Magnus laughed, “The spare bedroom has lots of room in it, s’only a twin bed in there.” He’d had to convince Taako that he needed even that much, because, like… What if you had guests, dude? Gotta have at least one spare bed. It had not been, despite the elf’s claims to the contrary, an attempt to upsell him.

“Honestly, I don’t think I’ve ever been in there,” Kravitz admitted, a hand rubbing the back of his neck.

He unwrapped one of the signs carefully, laying it flat on its cloth covering to show it off. Magnus didn’t think Taako would mind him showing these to Kravitz. The name of the bakery always made Magnus laugh, especially in this fancy font Taako’s requested he carve into the wood.

_Knead to Bake!_

It was mostly unpainted, weather-treated wood. He could have painted it all, but Taako knew Magnus’s preferences for this stuff at this point, and had nicely let him do the finishing however he liked ( _“As long as it all matches with itself, I’m good, bubala.”_ ). Magnus always loved the personality of a piece of wood to still show through whatever he turned it into. The grain and lines and knots all reminded him of the whole other life that wood had had before. Maybe it was a little sad to think of a huge tree being turned into a coffee table, but he thought there was something beautiful in that too.

Kravitz was kneeling down to get a closer look, murmuring, “This is beautiful, Magnus.”

Magnus blushed and scratched his nose, “Gotta make it nice for Taako. The bakery’s always hoppin’, and it’s gonna be out front. He’d kill me if I made him something ugly.”

“I knew you’d made the rest of the things in here,” Kravitz gestured toward the living room, where several heavy wooden pieces of furniture lived, “But this is really lovely.”

“I could always make you somethin’, buddy. Just ask.”

Kravitz shook his head, looking thoughtful, “Not now, but. I’ll let you know.”

Magnus helped himself to a glass of water, thankful that Kravitz didn’t ask him about the non-sign project he was dropping off. He wasn’t great at misdirection on that kinda scale. He turned back and Kravitz was gently running a hand over some of the detailed carving in a corner.

Magnus cleared his throat, “You look good. By the way. Being together with him’s a good look for you.”

“Heh, thank you, Magnus. Things are a little weird, but… good.”

“I’m so, so happy for you guys.”

Magnus went to put the glass he’d used in the sink, though at his own house he’d probably just put it back in the cabinet, since he’d only used it for water. Julia didn’t care, but Taako totally would.

“Man,” Magnus said, remembering Julia and connecting a weird thread of thoughts in his head, “Getting laid on the regular really is the best, right dude?”

Kravitz made a strangled noise.

“Like, it does wonders for the mood. No wonder we’re both happy. Dang.”

“Maybe you should get going, Magnus,” Kravitz worked out, looking like he didn’t want to laugh, but the sound might be trying to escape his throat anyway. Magnus laughed easily and left, patting Kravitz on the back heavily as he went. Once he was gone, it wouldn’t be _his_ fault if Kravitz peeked at Taako’s second order.

 

 

* * *

 

 

Kravitz waited for Magnus to be out the door before barking out a helpless laugh. Physically, Magnus’s presence was intimidating as hell. His easy humor and kindness helped to soften that, but Kravitz confirmed what he’d been thinking before: he wasn’t super comfortable with just Magnus.

Briefly, in high school, Kravitz had entertained the idea of trying to date Magnus. That physical intimidation might have been something he was into? Kravitz had realized, after inserting himself into Magnus’s space a few times, that, no. He was not into bears. He wasn’t into Barry or girls or Magnus.

The front door opened. Right, even then, he’d known he wasn’t into anybody else but Taako. It was like Taako was made for him: all freckles and crooked smiles and bright colors.

Kravitz rose to greet his boyfriend, wrapping Taako up in a hug.

“You’re still here? Sweet boy hanging out in his jammies all day, just waiting to see me,” Taako teased, and Kravitz kissed his ear.

“Magnus dropped off your signs,” Kravitz told him, letting Taako kick off his shoes and shuck off his jacket, “Did he send you any previews? They came out so gorgeous.”

“Aw _shit,”_ Taako drooped, “That was supposed to be a surprise! Fuck.”

“The signs?” Kravitz wondered, wandering back to the wall the packages were wrapped up by.

“No, like,” Taako sighed, and then looked to the more upright piece and blinked at it. “Oh. You didn’t open it?”

“Why would I?”

“Alright, well, this one’s for you. Uh. Open it up, then? Surprise after all,” Taako seemed a little thrown off by not having his surprise ruined.

Kravitz, for his part, was now delighted by the idea that Taako had _gotten_ him anything. Food and physical affection, Taako gave easily, but presents? This was new

He carefully undid the tape sealing the soft cloth around this object. It wasn’t wooden. As soon as he had it open at all, Kravitz recognized what this object was.

A sleek and beautiful music stand, sturdy and matte and black. It was _pretty_ but seemed built for function. It wouldn’t break apart in the trunk of his car, he could tell by looking.

Kravitz was crouched by it when he turned and pulled the part of Taako that he could reach into a hug, arms wrapping around the elf’s knees.

“Thank you,” he said into Taako’s hip, leaning into the hand that came to rest on his head.

“S’not a big deal. I thought you deserved… a nice thing, for being so strong. ‘Sides, you should really thank Julia, I think she did most of the work.”

“Mmhm,” Kravitz pulled Taako down to join him on the floor and crawled up over him to kiss his face all over.

“Ugh, kiss me for real, you loser,” Taako complained, giggling and trying to catch Kravitz’s lips.

Kravitz complied happily, “Love you,” he hummed, “One day everyone’s gonna find out you’re secretly a softie.” Kravitz chuckled at the sour look Taako made, “I love it.”

Taako softened and played with one of Kravitz’s ears, which felt good (probably not as intense as Taako felt when he did it, though). The elf averted his eyes as he admitted, “I’m glad.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the only chapter in this whole thing where i couldn't figure out how to not change the POV halfway through (or have two tiny chapters). when i wrote MAGNUS at the top of the list of things to happen i kind of got down to the taako part and was like.. why would magnus still be there to watch this. also it would be weird to be in his head instead of one of the other boys?? lol  
> (i also didn't want to do two krav chapters in a row bc i've kept that streak of always switching alive throughout...)
> 
> i'm halfway through chapter 40 :( it's a weird feel. i don't feel like i should be done with these sweet boys. maybe there'll be a follow-up if there's still any interest by then, lol (way shorter than this tho)
> 
> thank you for the support, the comments and kudos and everything. have a lovely rest of your day, i love y'all


	27. Hocus Pocus

It was raining, putting a damper on Magic Day. Taako didn’t cancel, though, because it was the only time he really had an excuse to hang out with Angus. He just picked the kid up and brought him over to his house to spend the day with him. Angus’s grandpa didn’t mind, they’d checked.  
  


Kravitz was off doing something at either his place or just… out and about. Taako wasn’t his keeper or anything, and they didn’t actually live together (though he didn’t hate that idea).  
  


Angus was always game to come do stuff, anyway, because he was a good, easily bored kid.  
  


“I don’t think this is going to work, sir,” Angus kept protesting, as Taako tried to find a live stream of somebody on the computer that Angus could try and mind read.  
  


“You won’t know unless you try, Angles,” Taako tutted, and pulled up somebody who was just… vlogging live, for whatever reason. He sat back and waited for Angus to at least give it a shot, and when the look of concentration on the little boy’s face faded he didn’t look surprised by the result.  
  


“It doesn’t seem to work if I don’t have direct line of sight to them,” Angus explained. Maybe he’d been practicing on his own time.  
  


“So I guess the only mind you can read today is mine,” Taako said. “And that, my little friend, is a no-go. Don’t be snooping around on me.”  
  


“I won’t!” Angus chirped, “But what are we gonna do, then, sir?”  
  


Taako took in the excitable face in front of him, the one that he hated to admit to loving, and sighed. “I could always practice my magic, and you could watch?”  
  


“Oh wow! Sir, could we do that? That sounds amazing--”  
  


“Calm down, buckaroo,” Taako patted his head, “What should I change?” He looked around the room. This was all  _ his _ shit. He didn’t really want to mess anything up too bad. He’d managed to get the shower door mostly un-pinked through trial and error over the course of weeks. It was still a light purple.  
  


“Hmm,” Angus seemed to take this responsibility seriously, “Maybe if you start with something unimportant, sir, it’ll be okay if the magic doesn’t work!”  
  


There was a reason he liked this kid: he was a smartass, but they were on the same wavelength about a lot of things. “Right you are, Agnes. Maybe just a paper plate or something.”  
  


He went to find a clean one, tossing the ones they’d eaten on earlier into a compost bin, and held it between his hands.  
  


“Should I go for just color… or material? Should probably be practicing both things,” he admitted, watching Angus think about it.  
  


“How about color first? Then we can change the material and it’ll be really cool!”  
  


“If it works,” Taako murmured, and focused.  
  


When he’d started suppressing his power as a child, to keep from changing his foods into other non-foods and homework pages into leaves and all of that, he’d probably lost a lot of innate skill. When he’d been little, Taako never remembered it being so hard to start the process. Now, it would happen when he was lost deep in thought, or when he focused very, very hard.  
  


He relaxed his eyebrows when the plate started to change, first from its plain white to a deep red, and then to a nice wine purple. Taako glanced to Angus to gauge his reaction, hoping it was worth the wave of exhaustion that washed over him. That was the other thing: it was always easy when he didn’t mean to do it, or when it didn’t work right. He could get something the  _ wrong _ color, or  _ wrong  _ material and feel alright afterward. He could change his shower door to jelly the next time he spaced out in there and it wouldn’t knock him out or anything. It was annoying.  
  


“That’s amazing, sir!” Angus gushed, “Is it still paper? The color got so deep! It’s like it was always that color, instead of just being dyed... That’s incredible!”  
  


“Hoo boy,” Taako huffed, setting the plate down by the computer mouse, “So your mind stuff doesn’t hurt when you use it, right?” Angus shook his head and Taako got up to get some water, “Wonder if that’s ‘cause you’re a kid, or ‘cause your power’s easier? Or ‘cause I’m just bad at this. Gimme a minute.”  
  


Angus looked like he was thinking about that, when Taako sat back down with his water. “I don’t think you’re bad at this, sir. Just very out of practice. Are you using your magic at all when it’s not Magic Day?”  
  


Taako gave him a look, sipping at his water, “What do you think?”  
  


“I think it’d probably get easier if you used it more than once or twice a month.”  
  


“Fair. I should just have like… a rock that I can practice on. Sell it if I manage to turn it into gold or whatever.” Angus nodded vigorously, and then sat primly to wait for Taako to try the plate again.  
  


When Taako felt like he’d caught his breath, he picked up the plate. Could he turn it into something easy? It was paper, so something paper-adjacent… like cotton? Both things came from plant bits. He focused deeply, and was surprised when it didn’t take long for the effect to kick in. The plate’s tension evaporated in his hands as it turned into a circle of cloth.  
  


“Huh,” he said, not feeling half as winded, this time. Angus was buzzing with energy, eagerly taking and looking over what had once been a white paper plate.  
  


“I think you’ll have a lot more control over this if you just let yourself… do it, sir. That rock idea will keep the scale small, so you don’t get too tired. Do you wanna keep going?”  
  


He could see that Angus wanted him to press onward, but Taako waved a hand in defeat, taking the maroon cloth back. Maybe it could be a pocket square or something.  
  


“Let’s watch a movie or something, I wanna conk out on the couch.” Taako decided, letting Angus pick something out and curling up against the arm of the couch.  
  


When Angus shook him awake later, the movie was over and Taako’s stomach was growling, so the kiddo was probably hungry too. He had an Idea.  
  


“Hmm… what do you want for dinner, pumpkin? Also: how do you feel about helping me with a video?”  
  


A snack and makeover montage later, Taako was dressed up in his video-making apron, with his hair and makeup done casual and cute. This, so he didn’t look too hardcore next to Angus, who was already perfectly dapper and ready. He’d still done some clear mattifying powder on the kid and arranged his hair so that Angus could participate in beauty-time.  
  


They’d decided to do some simple pasta, since it was going to be an experimental… kid-friendly video. Taako’d have to watch his mouth, but he’d realized, in the last month or so… that sentiment, and heart, in his stuff… was hella lucrative. He could still be funny, but people loved him more when he was talking like he’d talk to Kravitz, and now he’d have Angus here to make it easy.  
  


He sat up the cameras first, hitting record and let Angus help with prep for the sauce.  
  


Angus was a natural, easily joking and teasing back when Taako would say something crazy for the camera. The bowtie pasta came out tasty-looking and tasty-smelling and tasty. He’d have to ask Angus’s grandpa before posting this one, but Taako had a great feeling about it. The mug cake video for Kravitz had been a huge success, and his views had been creeping up ever since.  
  


Taako took Angus home with most of the leftovers (setting aside enough for Kravitz, in case he turned up for dinner or tomorrow’s lunch) and slipped him twenty dollars, ostensibly for his help. Really, it was for in case Angus needed to order a pizza later in the week. Grandpa McDonald was kind, but not entirely there. More often, Taako noticed Angus coming to their meetings hungry. He’d been making a point of feeding him for a while, but sending him home with extra food couldn’t hurt. Angus couldn’t grow if he couldn’t eat, and schools only provided a few meals a day.  
  


It made it painfully easy for Taako to actually  _ care _ about this kid. And he didn’t even really mind.  
  


Because here was the thing, and the thing that Taako tried not to linger on too long. Angus was capable of surviving, with or without Taako’s help. He was resourceful and smart as hell. He was a good kid. He didn’t need Taako. But Angus liked  _ him  _ and Taako knew that their hanging out was an enriching experience that went both ways.  
  


Taako got to feel all of the fun parts of taking care of somebody (outings, dressing up, feeding them) with none of the actual responsibility. Angus got… a friend? Food? Hopefully he got something worthwhile out of it. The food, at least, because Taako’s influence on anything else probably wasn’t great, when he thought about it. What the fuck did he know about magic, right? Angus probably knew more than he did.  
  


It wasn’t a surprise that Kravitz turned up that evening, looking delighted to get to see Taako’s hair all done up nice for a video, eagerly tucking into the leftover pasta they’d set aside for him.  
  


It was all so… domestic. Like, not big house and two-point-five children domestic, but. Having someone significant in his house, who wanted to be there. Kravitz, of course, but Angus to some extent, too.

  
He let up the grip he hadn’t realized he’d had on his glass, and hoped Kravitz hadn’t noticed how scared the notion of  _ family,  _ in relation to  _ them,  _ made him feel.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it's magic day! time for sentiment! time for naps! time for videos!
> 
> i finished writing :0  
> or rather, i got to the end. there's still probably revision and expansion in my future, but what the fuck.  
> there's at least one spot where i had in my notes "add smut if it's not long enough" but then it was long enough, but i kind of still want to add it. does that make sense? there's a few things like that throughout, lol, BUT
> 
> its done


	28. Night and Day

More and more, Kravitz found himself spending time at Taako’s townhouse. It was more comfortable, had better f-wifi, and of course, it had Taako. A few days back, Taako had finally pushed a key into his hand as he left for work and said, “So you don’t have to leave the place unlocked if you go out.”  


Kravitz was still trying to figure out what that meant.  


It seemed like Taako’s motivation was just convenience, but he couldn’t help reading into it. Taako had given him a key to his _home_ . This was so much trust. The key was so small, such a tiny thing, and was weighing on his heart a lot.  


Things had changed so much in the last couple of months, in his life, in their relationship. They’d started dating, he’d quit his job, he was writing and playing music as his main activity, and: he was always happier to be in Taako’s house. Even when the elf was gone. He’d do Taako’s laundry or clean up forgotten dishes in the sink, and Taako would come home and tease him and thank him and Kravitz _liked_ that so much more than sitting in his own apartment.  


Most of the nights that he wasn’t at Taako’s, he’d be lying there wondering why he even had an apartment of his own anymore. He wasn’t going to be able to afford it for long, not without a handout from his mother or his boyfriend, which was definitely a no-go. He wouldn't do that. As much as he already felt like a mooch for not actively working, he couldn’t be that person again. He had to have faith that he wasn’t going to stay a charity case for long. So.  


It seemed like the obvious thing to do was move in with Taako.  


But was that just something he could _do?_ He didn’t know how to bring it up.  


So he asked Sloane, because Barry was too liable to talk to Lup, and Lup would definitely talk to Taako.  


13:12  
Sloane: _you haven’t texted me in months and this is the first thing i hear from you? wow_  


Kravitz: _Sorry. There’s been a lot going on._  


Sloane: _i’ll say. so what, you’re already that serious and you can’t just ask him?_  


He sat back and thought about it. They felt serious. They’d gone and had dinner with each other’s families, they slept over at one or the other’s homes most nights, they went grocery shopping… It felt serious. But.  


Kravitz: _That’s the thing. I’m not sure if he’d be ready to take that step. I said I loved him and he hasn’t said it back._  
  
  
Kravitz: _Which is okay. But. What if he’s not ready?_  


He’d already given himself a few talks about Taako not saying the words back. Just because Kravitz felt that way and had accidentally said it super early didn’t mean that _Taako_ had to feel the same, or say it right away. It didn't mean anything bad, and... Taako showed that he cared in lots of other ways, he didn’t _need_ to say anything.  


Sloane: _well. when hurls and i decided to move in together, it was because my lease was up. got any cool excuses like that lying around?_  


Kravitz: _I was already month-to-month._  


Sloane: _yikes._  


Kravitz had thought about this, too, but it was good to have somebody else talk him through it. His only good reason was the money thing, and it wasn’t really a _cool_ reason. It was a pathetic reason. He also didn't want to move back in with, say, his mother. It wasn't like he  _couldn't,_ but. He absolutely could not, for his pride.  


Sloane: _hmm… i mean, have you considered… stay with me here… the truth? that your place feels bad and his place feels good? taako loves being told how good his shit is, right?_  


Kravitz: _Just say that? That I like being at his house? That’s weird as hell._  


And yet, he could see Taako laughing at him and pretending not to be happy, but actually being happy with such a statement. It was better than talking about finances, more honest. If Taako wanted him to be there, wanted to let that happen, he wasn't going to be upset with a reason like that.  


Sloane: _it’s up to you, krav. if he’s as into you as you are to him, then he’ll probably be cool with having you close at hand. and if he’s not, better that you figure that out now before things get deeper._  


Kravitz: _I’d rather not break up over something like this, though... I'm sure you understand why._  


Kravitz: _But I guess it is kind of his fault that I quit my job, even if it was something I’d wanted to do. Hopefully this doesn't scare him off..._  


Sloane: _hey, i believe in you. i don’t know if i believe in taako, but you’ve got this._  


Kravitz: _Thanks, Sloane_.  


He looked around his apartment, slow and deliberate, and made up his mind. _No._ This place wasn’t home.  


Kravitz drove the fifteen minutes to Taako’s house and let himself in, feeling weirdly excited. This could either go great or poorly, and either way something new would _go._ He could be scared until he was blue in the face, could wait forever if he let himself, but Taako was more impulsive than he was. It was a weird thrill to know that _he_ could be the one to shake things up this time. Even if it was mostly more of the same, just settling in more permanently.  


He’d jumped the gun a little on the timing, maybe, since Taako wouldn’t be home for a few hours yet. But it just solidified what he’d already known: even when he wasn’t doing anything of value, this place felt like where he ought to be. The colors, the sunlight through the windows. The ambient smells.  
  
  
He made himself busy, sorting laundry and realizing with a start... that even though he'd been the one to load the washer, he hadn't noticed how many of his own clothes had come to live here. Just like at his apartment, Taako had found a toothbrush for him here. The shampoo he preferred. It was all reassuring, but not enough to make this easy.  


A few hours later, most of his nervous energy had settled in his gut, and Taako walked inside and lit up immediately to see him. Kravitz felt his own face doing the same in kind.  


“I could really get used to this,” Taako sat down his things and joined Kravitz on the couch, tucking himself under Kravitz’s arm.  


That, Kravitz thought, was about as good an opening as he was going to get, “It’s funny you should say that,” he started, and then paused to gauge Taako’s reaction so far. His frame had gone a little tense, but Taako was still leaning into his side. Kravitz rested his chin on Taako’s head, “I was thinking. Does it really make sense for me to have the apartment?” Taako’s hair smelled like fresh bread.  


Taako shifted enough to get a sideways glance in, and then settled back in, “Um. What do you think?”  


“I don’t think it makes a whole lot of sense,” Kravitz admitted, wishing that he could see what expression Taako was making. He squeezed the elf’s arm a little.  


Taako was quiet for a minute before saying, “You’re not wrong. Are you… are you talkin’ about moving in, though? Gotta be more specific, Krav.”  


“If you’d have me,” Kravitz tried to keep his voice carefully neutral.  


Taako really did pull back, then, sitting on his heels and squinting at Kravitz’s face. Assessing?  


“Do you think… _Did_ you think I was gonna say no to the… to the suggestion that you were gonna move in with me? Krav, baby, _dude._ You already basically live here, I…   _uh-yeah that makes sense._ ”  


“The alternative is moving back in with my mother, I suppose. Or getting another, _other_ shitty job again.” Kravitz laughed a little at how hard and fast Taako shook his head at that, his ears nearly smacking both of them in the face.  


Taako crawled over to force his way into Kravitz’s lap, tucked in sideways against his chest.  


“When I come home and you’re _not_ here,” Taako said, as reluctant and soft as he could be, “The place feels empty, now. It’s like you ruined it. But.” Taako sighed against his neck, “When you are here, it feels right? Ughhh, this really is so gay.”  
  


“Well, dear,” Kravitz took the hair tie out of Taako’s braid from work and started to finger-comb it out, saying in his best deadpan, “I’ve got news for you about this whole thing. It’s never stopped being super gay.”  


They sat there quietly, just enjoying each other’s body heat for a bit, and when Taako spoke, Kravitz almost didn’t notice. “This is some scary shit.”  


“Mmhm. But I’m glad that I get to go through it with you.”  


Eventually Taako got fidgety with just being held and insisted that they get up and reheat some leftovers for dinner. Kravitz realized with a start that he knew how Taako liked his dishwasher arranged, now, and knew where to find most things in the cupboards.

  
And he grinned to himself about that for a bit, not minding the way Taako kept chiding him for being sappy. He was allowed to be sappy. He was _home._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> a slightly shorter one, but. i kept trying to think of ways to artificially inflate it, and decided that i liked it the way it was.
> 
> tomorrow is an M-day! rejoice??
> 
> i was enjoying the post-at-10am situation but right now it's easier to post at 10pm instead. (no idea when i'm posting tomorrow tbh)
> 
> i love these boys and I love you. have a nice night.


	29. Heart is Full

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Make sure you check out the chapter from last night if you missed it :0
> 
> If you're skipping M time, jump straight down to the last paragraph before the horizontal line break

That evening had Taako in what felt like a totally justified, very possessive mood. Once they’d eaten and he’d made fun of Kravitz for long enough that he could see the dark blush on his face, he decided, _yep, I’m gonna jump those bones to-day._

 

He impatiently let Kravitz put the dishes away, untucking the half-elf’s shirt and sliding his hands around Kravitz’s middle underneath it, snickering when Kravitz laughed like he was being tickled. This was not tickle-time. He edged his fingers downward, tucking them in under the button at the front of Kravitz’s pants. He _lived_ for the way Kravitz set the unfinished dishes back into the sink and turned around to face him.

 

Taako reeled him in for a kiss, not even caring that they tasted like two different leftover meals mixed together, unbuttoning Kravitz’s pants and giggling when Kravitz started trying to back him up out of the kitchen. That was fair, they maybe did more making out in the kitchen than most people. Cooking was sexy.

 

Taako steered them past the couch, which had also seen a few fun romps at this point, and into the bedroom. Kravitz’s pants had gotten lost somewhere on the way here, and Taako was trying to pull his own shirt off when Kravitz decided to help him with _his_ pants. He wrapped his arms around Kravitz’s shoulders as Kravitz ducked down to help tug his panties off, stepping out of them and sucking a mark into Kravitz’s neck at once.

 

Taako stepped back to let Kravitz finish getting his shirt off, sitting on the edge of the bed and pulling his socks off.

 

Now: the plan.

 

They hadn’t ever gone as far as penetration, unless you counted putting dicks in mouths, and Taako was dying to try it. As novel as it had been to learn new ways to get somebody off, every other physical relationship he’d had had been… very into that. And Taako was, too, but. For whatever reason, they just hadn’t taken that step yet.

 

He’d been trying to figure out for a couple of weeks, now, whether it was just Kravitz not wanting to bottom, or being afraid of bringing it up, or just… Kravitz not being interested in anal. Taako could make his peace with any of those things, probably, for his boyfriend. Because he was the best thing that had happened to Taako in a very long time, and the sex was amazing regardless.

 

But he really, really wanted to be inside of Kravitz tonight. To take care of him, entirely, and give him everything he wanted to give.

 

Taako pulled out the lube from the bedside table (it wasn’t really _rummaging_ if it was already on top of everything else in the drawer). He beckoned a now-naked Kravitz to join him on the bed, wrapping a hand around Kravitz’s erection and smiling into Kravitz’s neck.

 

“Krav?”

 

“Mm?” Kravitz was nuzzling his ear, and it made Taako shiver.

 

“Can I finger you?”

 

The shaft in his hand jumped, and Taako bit his lip as he leaned back, watching precome bead up.

 

“You like that idea?” He asked, resting his forehead against Kravitz’s. The half-elf’s eyes were closed, but he nodded a little against him. “Gonna need you to say it, bubala.”

 

“I-I’d like that,” Kravitz mumbled, and Taako decided not to make him go through the rest of the whole… _tell me specifically what you want_ bit. He knew what Kravitz meant.

 

“Tell me,” Taako said, nudging Kravitz onto his back, “Tell me if you need me to stop, okay? Have you done this before, babe?” He knew Kravitz had had at least a one other boyfriend between highschool and now, but the bedroom was a no-judgement zone.

 

Kravitz shook his head, “I… I was on top, but I’ve never...” He seemed to lose his train of thought as he watched Taako pour out some lube onto his fingers.

 

“It’s alright. I’ll take care of you,” Taako shimmied down onto his elbows, licking a stripe up Kravitz’s cock. He was sloppy and distracting, waiting until Kravitz seemed entirely focused on his mouth before circling the rim with a slow finger. Kravitz didn’t tense up as much as he’d expected, as Taako slowly breached him with a finger, going careful and gentle. He didn’t want to make this first time uncomfortable for Kravitz, he wanted this to be something he was allowed to _do_.

 

And he didn’t want Kravitz to think he couldn’t return the favor, either. If it wasn’t fun for Kravitz, he wouldn’t want to swap positions at a later date. Taako’d had some amazing daydreams about riding Kravitz’s dick, and he could finally, _finally_ see the light at the end of that particular tunnel.

 

By the time he was pushing a second finger inside alongside the first, Kravitz was squirming. It was hard to tell if he was trying to get more of Taako’s mouth or his fingers, or less of either of them. He pumped his fingers gently and asked about it.

 

“B-both. Gods. You know just what you’re doing, huh?” Kravitz was clearly struggling not to hide his face behind his arm, but they’d already had a few talks about hiding during sex. Both of them kept _trying_ to do it, and neither of them liked missing the expressions the other made.

 

“Mmhm. I know just what you need, baby. Are you gonna want my cock, or just fingers tonight?” He rubbed his cheek against the head of Kravitz’s length, smiling his best sweet smile, “I’ll be happy either way, love to see you like this.”

 

Kravitz’s eyes went wide, and Taako watched his hand visibly start to go cover his eyes and then flop back down on the bed. His lovely, handsome, beautiful boyfriend said, “I _really_ want you to fuck me.”

 

So there was that. Taako worked in a third finger when Kravitz was ready for it, the soft moans fuelling him to give Kravitz just… just the best damn dicking he could. It was all he could do to not just stop with the fingers and get on with it, pulling off of Kravitz’s dick and asking, “Think you could grab me a condom, sweetie?” Taako’s hands were a little preoccupied.

 

Kravitz nodded quickly, and this time there was some rummaging as he twisted to reach into the bedside drawer. Taako didn’t let up on his ass as the angle shifted, biting a mark into Kravitz’s thigh to keep his mouth occupied. Kravitz seemed to be having a tricky time of it, visibly distracted, but eventually flopped back onto his back with a wrapper in hand, passing it down to Taako wordlessly.

 

“Think you’re ready for this?” Taako asked, even though his dick was probably going to _die_ if it didn’t get some kind of friction, soon. The cold and wet condom didn’t do anything to help with that, but he indulged in a couple of idle strokes as Kravitz watched him. He’d taken his fingers out and wiped them on a tissue, and Kravitz was squirming a little beneath him. “Babe?”

 

“Please? I want you,” Kravitz said, in a voice that sounded very small for him. Taako crawled over him and kissed away that smallness, letting Kravitz grind up against him as Taako applied more lube to his cock. He reached down to guide himself inside, sinking in as slow as he could make himself. Kravitz wasn’t helping, hips trying to rock down onto him eagerly.

 

Their hips were barely flush with each other before Kravitz was urging him to move, and Taako did not have the willpower to deny him that, pulling out shallowly and setting a deep, quick pace.

 

For it being Kravitz’s first time doing it like this, he took to it like a pro, wrapping his legs around Taako’s back and tugging Taako into a breathless kiss. Taako reached down between them to take Kravitz in hand, knowing that _he_ wasn’t going to last very long anyway. He’d need to make time for a patient, long, slow thing. Taako wasn’t wired for waiting, for holding off when he just wanted to come, or wanted to see somebody else do it. Kravitz had more willpower there, usually, but not tonight. Taako wanted to watch Kravitz. He wanted to _feel_ Kravitz come apart around him.

 

It really didn’t take much to tip Kravitz over the edge, once he had a slick hand on him. Kravitz moaned into his mouth, head tilting back wordlessly as Taako stroked him through it, murmuring, “I’ve got you. You’re so good, I’ve got you,” against his jaw. Taako followed him over that edge, glad to still have Kravitz’s arms around him as he shuddered through it.

 

He pulled out gently as they caught their collective breath, and Kravitz winced for a second, but smiled sleepily at Taako and he knew he’d done pretty okay. But as the one who was sitting up, it was his job to do the cleaning up. He did all of that, getting rid of the condom and tissue and wiping Kravitz down with a warm washcloth. He let Kravitz pull him in under the covers, tossing the cloth in the direction of the clothes hamper.

 

“Did you like that?” Taako asked, feeling pretty sated and comfortable, himself. Kravitz nodded against his chest, and Taako pet his hair, “You did so good, came all pretty for me. Maybe next time we’ll trade spots... Would you like that, babe?” He laughed at the huff of warm air against his chest as Kravitz nodded again, more quickly this time. “Alright, dude, don’t worry. If I thought we could manage round two anytime soon, I’d be down to clown tonight. But yeah,” he said, trailing off as he realized Kravitz’s breathing was evening out, “Next time.”

 

He glanced over at the alarm clock. Only like nine o’clock. Being in a relationship was killing his bad sleep schedule, too. That was fine.

 

* * *

 

In the morning, Taako ran a bath and pulled his boyfriend into it. This was mainly a continuation of the warm tangle they’d been lying in before they woke up, but with the guises of _getting out of bed_ and _getting clean._ He pulled his hair into a bun so that he could lay half-on Kravitz without getting it soaked, thinking about the process of moving house.

 

Both times Taako had moved, he’d had help from Lup. Merle had helped them take boxes out to the car they’d shared, when they first moved out of his house. Barry had been there to give Taako and his sister a hand when they moved out of that apartment and into their current homes.

 

“We should get people to come help move your stuff,” he said, apropo of nothing. He’d been having the entire dialogue in his head, before now.

 

Kravitz blinked a few times, like he’d maybe been falling asleep, and Taako laid a kiss on the bit of Kravitz’s stomach he was resting on, amused.

 

“I could cook or like… order a pizza, and they could do all the carrying,” Taako continued.

 

“So I’d be in the lifting category, I’m guessing.”

 

“You wanna make hors d'oeuvres instead? Hmm, maybe if we get Magnus _and_ Julia to come, you won’t have to pick anything heavy up.”

 

“It’s my stuff. I’d feel bad if they got hurt because I was being lazy.” Taako traced a pattern in the hair on Kravitz’s forearm. He tried to make a heart, but it wasn’t immediately recognizable as one.

 

“They like to help. Get Mags and Jules, my sister and Barold… got ourselves a moving party.”

 

“We could get the whole gang back together, at that point. I’m sure Lucretia would come by for moral support.”

 

Taako turned to shove his face into Kravitz’s belly, like he could hide there, “Nooo… not Lucy.”

 

He knew he probably wouldn’t be able to get away with the not explaining _why,_ but Taako _knew_ the why was stupid as hell. It wasn’t Lucy’s fault that she was a horrible matchmaker. She’d set him up with so many bad dates, and some of those bad dates were _terrible_ dates, and. Well. Taako wasn’t above holding a childish grudge about it, after one too many. But he knew, in his heart of hearts, that she wasn’t out to get him. It hadn’t stopped him from blowing up about it, more than a little drunk, and deciding not to be her friend anymore. It was dumb. She was nice, and had been a good friend.

 

Taako knew that she and Kravitz had always gotten along, both of them leaning into that quieter side of nerdy. Maybe he’d figure out a way to say _I’m not ready to get over my dumb resentment_ before Kravitz asked about it.

 

As it was, right now, the half-elf was kindly letting Taako cling without outward judgement. Eventually, though, he’d probably have to give up on being mad. Or at least accept that maybe his other friends wanted to see Lucretia sometimes.

  
He just couldn’t believe, even now, that she’d thought that (for fucking example) he and _Brian_ would really be together forever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yesterday/last night: fluff time.  
> Today: fluff time with Extra Stuff
> 
> What you missed if you skipped: taako being kinda possessive but sweet
> 
> Tomorrow is also M I think. I can't remember. I think so, though.
> 
> I love u.


	30. Sea of Love

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> if you're skippin', you'll hit the phrase "not a boy scout" and i guess that's it. M goes all the way to the end after that, lol

A few days of Taako actually working had gone by, and Kravitz did his best to keep busy. They drew up a grocery list so he could go take care of that, he worked on moving his computer setup to Taako’s house  _ (their _ house? That thought felt wild) so that he could do more music and social media work without stealing Taako’s laptop. He packed up some of his apartment ahead of the planned moving party, so that their friends wouldn’t be literally going through his bathroom and bedroom drawers. It was good to feel productive, even if there was a part of him that itched to have somewhere to  _ be _ during the day.  
  


Now, Taako was home for a semi-lazy day of paperwork and making space in the house for Kravitz’s worldly goods. Kravitz appreciated that the elf was willing to actually clean out his closet enough to give him a section to hang up his things. He’d been in that closet, and it was packed in tight when the clothes were all put up properly on hangers.  
  


“Work on that jingle, music boy,” Taako had said, as he’d shooed Kravitz out of the warzone.  
  


So Kravitz was doing that, the sound on his desktop cranked up loud so that Taako could hear every little noise as he changed it. It made him feel a little self-conscious about the whole process, especially because he didn’t consider himself a  _ pro _ at this kind of sound-editing, but every now and then Taako would pipe up from a few rooms away about how cool something sounded. So that was nice.  
  


By now he was many, many iterations deep in  _ flashsparkle,  _ and they really were sounding nice and polished. Kravitz wasn’t sure what ‘finished’ sounded like. If this was some commission (and maybe it technically had started that way, but he wasn’t about to ask Taako to pay him for it), he could make the executive decision to just call it done.  
  


He clicked and dragged a slider down a little bit, extended the length of a sound layer by pixels, hit play.  
  


There was a crash from the other room, and he scooted the computer chair back to try and see down the hallway, about to stand up and investigate the noise when Taako appeared in a rush. The elf barrelled into him and the chair, the thing groaning under their combined weight as Taako leaned past him to hit save on the project file.  
  


“Uh?” Kravitz shifted, concerned for the structural integrity of the chair.  
  


“That was it,” Taako said, like it was obvious, and extricated himself from Kravitz’s lap and putting his hands on his hips, “That’s the one, don’t touch it anymore, it’s perfect.”  
  


Kravitz raised an eyebrow, “It’s barely different than before.” He let Taako pull him up out of the chair and swing their joined hands back and forth, “Are you sure? It’ll be a whole thing if you change your mind, later…”  
  


Taako shook his head, “Nope, I’m sure. It’s done! I love it, dude. It’s magic, you captured that perfect feeling of like… fucking  _ magic  _ in a seven second ditty, I fucking _ love _ you.”  
  


Kravitz’s eyes went wide, but Taako kept going, babbling for a minute, “You’re so talented, babe, honestly.”  
  


Taako squeezed his hands, and looked up into his eyes, and then seemed to go back over what all he had said. Kravitz, for his part, felt like his heart was going to pound out of his chest. It was definitely a slip of the tongue, Taako hadn’t meant to say that, but.  
  


“Oh, fuck. Uh. Shit. I,” Taako hadn’t let go of his hands, but now his eyes were wide, too, and his face and ears were shifting quickly from tan to a deep red. He brought their hands up to hide his face, “I didn’t mean to say that right then. Fuck. It wasn’t about the music, either, like I love that as a side thing. Shit. Please say something.”  
  


Kravitz worked his jaw for a second, feeling like laughing would be the wrong answer. But he wanted to laugh. “I’m feeling a little better about my botched confession?” He offered, separating their hands so he could cradle Taako’s face properly between his. Taako peeked out from between two of the fingers he was still hiding behind.  
  


“I didn’t mean to say it, but, um. That doesn’t mean I didn’t mean it,” Taako huffed, looking annoyed at the whole situation. Kravitz did laugh, then.  
  


“If we both blurt it out on accident, I think we can safely say that we deserve each other’s bullshit.”  
  


“But you love those romantic gestures and stuff,” Taako leaned into one of Kravitz’s hands, finally letting his own hands fall away from his face. Kravitz thumbed across the red of his cheek.  
  


“I do love those… were you planning something more extreme?” Kravitz still felt like laughing, his heart was in his throat but he felt so  _ light _ and happy. Taako loved him. “I love you,” Kravitz grinned, saying it because he couldn’t help saying it.  
  


Taako seemed like he’d lost the fight with his smile, sighing and admitting, “I was going to make some very romantic dinners and gestures before saying it, for sure. That ship done sailed, now, I guess.” He closed his eyes, and tilted more into the hand he’d been leaning into, “I do love you, though. Gods. It feels really weird to say that out loud.”  
  


“I like watching your face when I say it,” Kravitz smiled, “It feels… indescribably good to hear you say it back, Taako.”  
  


And then they devolved into just smiling and echoing those three words back and forth at each other for… oh, probably ten minutes. Eventually  _ that _ devolved into kissing, and taking a couple of steps at a time toward the bedroom, stopping to push each other against the wall every couple of feet. Kravitz helpfully tugged their respective pajama bottoms off (pants for him, shorts for Taako) when they finally made it to the bedroom door frame. Taako’s face was so red and soft.  
  


He glanced into the room and sighed. Kravitz had forgotten about the closet cleanup. It actually didn’t look that bad, but the ‘maybe’ pile was all over the bed. Taako leaned against the wall, shrugging when Kravitz looked back at him.  
  


“We could just fuck on the clothes and clean up later?” Taako raised his eyebrows hopefully.  
  


“I’d rather not,” Kravitz frowned, going to start folding the clothes on the bed, “I mean, I do want to do that, but not on the clean clothes.”  
  


“Mm, look at the regular boy scout over here,” Taako commented mildly, hopping up to sit in the clothesless center of the bed.  
  


Kravitz was honestly pretty surprised at how much progress had been made in the closet. It was almost half-emptied out, and there were almost three full white garbage bags of clothes sitting on the floor, ready to be donated. He wasn’t about to give Taako any flak for not finishing up this chore. “I’ll be done in a second, if you want to get started,” Kravitz offered, re-hangering dresses and shirts so that he could get them out of the way. They’d have another look at the  _ maybe  _ stuff, later.  
  


Taako perked up, “Oooh… I take it back. My handsome boyfriend, whom I have confessed to love, is a  _ pervert, _ not a boy scout.” Kravitz watched him retrieve the lube from the bedside table out of the corner of his eye, swallowing dryly. He hadn’t meant to imply anything  _ specific  _ by ‘get started,’ but Taako clearly had ideas about what that meant.  
  


It was impossible not to glance back every few seconds, making the whole cleanup process take longer. Taako was being very fast and loose with the noises he made, over the top on purpose, but Kravitz didn’t doubt the elf was having a good time. By the time he’d cleared the bed of clothes, Taako had two fingers deep in his ass, scissoring and stretching enthusiastically. Kravitz tore his eyes away from between Taako’s legs and up to his face, where Taako grinned crookedly at him.  
  


“Gonna get up here and join me?” Taako rolled his hips into a thrust of his fingers, and Kravitz crawled up over him eagerly. They’d messed around with fingers yesterday morning, Taako coming from just that and then hiding his face in a pillow until he was late for work, but Kravitz knew what Taako wanted from him, this time.  
  


He still asked, though, “Looks like you’ve got things taken care of, love. Want my fingers too?” He brushed the hair out of Taako’s face.  
  


Taako shook his head, panting softly, “Don’t need more fingers, just dick please.” Kravitz glanced down to see the elf working three fingers into himself, now. He grabbed a condom (no longer a bottom-of-the-drawer search) and rolled it on, pressing Taako’s legs up so that his knees were nearly touching his chest. He appreciated the noise that earned him, keening and high.  
  


“How do you want me, sweetheart?” Taako’s hand finally stilled as Kravitz rubbed his thumb into the elf’s inner thigh.  
  


“Mm, slow and steady to start. Think I’ve had more fun with toys than you, but it’s been a while with a real boy for ol’ Taako.”  
  


Kravitz rewarded his honesty with a kiss, feeling, more than seeing when Taako’s hand was removed from the downstairs equation. He pulled back and gently released Taako’s legs, lubing up his own fingers to reassure himself that Taako was ready.  
  


Taako whined a little, “Done with fingers, I said.” He wiggled his hips though, which made Kravitz smile, removing his fingers and resting the head of his cock at Taako’s rim. The elf squirmed impatiently, “C’mon, already.”  
  
  
“You wanted ‘slow and steady,’” Kravitz reminded him, pressing inward and gently rocking his hips. Taako gasped, breaking eye contact as Kravitz slowly buried himself to the hilt, the coil of heat in Kravitz’s gut lighting up as he watched Taako pant. He pulled back and gave an experimental thrust, watching Taako’s heavy cock jump against his belly.  
  


“Mighta lied. Gods. Please move,” Taako breathed, and Kravitz complied. He did set a relaxed pace, just enjoying watching Taako sigh and shift and then ease into moaning as Kravitz adjusted his angle. It felt good, like  _ of course it felt good,  _ and Kravitz had thought about this dozens of times, but in the moment it was easy to keep things under control: Taako loved him.  
  


The thought was grounding and freeing and exciting, and it just made him want to cherish and love every little flick of Taako’s long ears or curl of Taako’s toes.  
  


Eventually, though, Taako squirmed again in impatience, hands coming up to rest on Kravitz’s shoulders, “More? I want more, please and thank you.” He said, trying for his _Taako’s-in-charge_ tone and landing somewhere more like _Taako-really-wants-to-come_ tone. The fact of the matter was that Taako was in charge regardless of how commanding he made his voice, so Kravitz bucked his hips harder and enjoyed the delighted  _ eep _ Taako gasped out.  
  


Taako’s blunt nails dug into Kravitz’s shoulders, voice pitching higher and higher until it was less moaning and more wailing. Kravitz felt Taako shudder around him as the elf arched up hard and came into the space between them. He fucked him through it as Taako tried to pull him closer, mumbling hoarse nonsense in Kravitz’s ear when he finished and stilled.  
  


Taako didn’t let him get up to clean for a good few minutes, clinging even as he pulled out. Kravitz complied even as various fluids started to dry, gently extricating himself when he felt Taako’s grip let up. “Love you,” Taako murmured, looking so blissed out and sleepy as Kravitz wiped him down, “Sorry I said it dumb.” He giggled into a kiss when Kravitz laid back down to join him for a midday post-coital nap, “Thank you, also, for. Fuck.”   
  


Kravitz laughed and pulled the covers up. Productive day, indeed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> what you missed if you skipped M: taako did some more mumble-y i love you's. kravitz successfully put the clothes away.
> 
> i think this is the last chapter with anything smutty? unless y'all want me to add in the scene in like chapter 37. lemme know and i'll literally write it and put it in, making 37 a fucking MONSTER compared to normal chapter length for me...
> 
> we're getting close to the end, now, and ahhh... it's weird but good. i'm still not 100% sure how well it'll be received, but i went through it all editing and... i'm pretty satisfied.
> 
> thank you, as always, for your support <3


	31. Bricks and Mortar

They’d already started carrying in boxes of Kravitz’s shit when Lup spied a familiar truck pulling up in front of Taako’s house, she called into the open front doorway, “Dad’s here!”

 

“I did _not_ invite that old man!!” Taako shouted back from the kitchen. Lup carried the armful of hangers she was bringing in back to Taako’s room, feeling a little weird about _knowing_ that they were sharing a bedroom, now. But that made sense. All of this made sense.

 

She was super proud of Taako for this big step, and she trusted him to really mean it and want this, but the boys hadn’t been dating even three months. It felt weird to be helping them unpack into this new phase. Lup wouldn’t trade that weirdness for anything, would’ve been pissed off to be left out, but this whole thing just had her feeling a little lost in her thoughts.

 

Lup wandered back out front to meet Merle, who was easing a huge potted plant out of the back of the truck. She rescued him with her longer arms, setting it down on the sidewalk, “Sup, Daddy-o? Who blabbed about the party?”

 

“Mavey got wind of it,” Merle confessed, shoving the tailgate closed, “Did I miss all the furniture? Thought the truck might help, but Magnus’s here already, looks like.”

 

“Mm, Magnus and Julia are doing that stuff, yeah. Thanks, though. C’mon in, Taako’s gonna throw a fit, but he’ll still feed ya.” She carried the pot up for him, since it was almost as big as Merle was, setting it down on the other side of the rocking chair on the patio.

 

Taako was in the doorway of the kitchen when they walked in, one hand on his hip while the other one moved around with his words. “We’ve already got enough hands without you showing up,” and then, “You didn’t bring Mookie?”

 

“Like you said, got enough hands here. I dropped him off with Mavis at the bakery on the way over.”

 

Lup stifled a laugh behind her hand as Taako’s ears went up in alarm, and then sloo _oowly_ relaxed as he took a couple of deep breaths. She patted his shoulder, “They’ll call you if anything goes wrong, Taaks.”

 

“A-anyway,” Taako waved off her hand, “Why don’t y’all do something useful, like, uh. Combine the blu-ray collections. We break up later, I’m keepin’ all of them.”

 

Lup snorted and went to grab more of Kravitz’s clothes hangers from her car.

 

Barry and Kravitz were valiantly trying to help the Burnsides couple with unloading furniture, but basically being waved aside as the nice couch and dismantled bed and kitchen table all made their way inside, and into the guest bedroom that nobody was going to sleep in. Sometimes Lup had slept there, if she and Taako got carried away drinking, but it looked like it was going to be entirely full of crap at this rate. Maybe the boys would sell some of the furniture they didn’t need, later.

 

With so many extra hands and only one smallish apartment’s worth of stuff, they were done unloading and unpacking everything by late afternoon, and the house smelled wonderful. Taako had been taking his vow of _“I’m not going to help, like, at all, but I’ll make it worth your while”_ very seriously, cooking away all morning and afternoon. There were actual, honest-to-gods gift baskets of pastries and booze sitting on the counter for when everyone left.

 

He’d also baked homemade pizzas for them, and cookies, and made a pitcher of fresh sangria.

 

“Wow, dude,” Magnus laughed, stacking up approximately half of the extra-meaty pizza on his paper plate. “It wasn’t even a lot of stuff.”

 

“Yeah, well,” Taako stood off to the side, apparently not hungry after snacking while they all moved stuff around, “You guys came through, saved me a lot of hassle.”

 

“You probably did more work than me,” Barry pointed out, poking around inside the basket labelled _Lup and Barry_ all nice and pretty. She’d have to figure out something cute and decorative to shove into it when they got home. Their place was sort of… sleek lines and skull tableaus, if she was going to try and describe the decor. Maybe it’d be a good place to put junkmail.

 

Kravitz was hanging back near Taako, waiting for Magnus and Julia (who’d done probably ninety-five percent of the heavy lifting) to fill their plates. Merle was already at the table with a veggie-only arrangement, and Lup tried one slice of each of the four pies Taako had set out for them, knowing she probably wouldn’t finish all four.

 

It was nice, though. Taako’s kitchen had never been so crowded or rowdy, all fun and laughs until Magnus and Julia begged off to go home and let the dogs out, promising that they’d be inviting everyone over soon.

 

Merle asked when they’d gone, “So you’re tellin’ me that none of you kids want any plants? Thought I’d raised you twerps better.”

 

Lup, in particular, had zero interest in gardening. They’d always had houseplants in their room growing up in Merle’s house, she guessed as a sort of trial-run first pet kind of situation, and it was always Taako who remembered to water them, and even then not at the right times. Merle was always fussing and replacing them with healthy new plants, taking back the over or under-watered plants so that he could get them back in shape. If that whole thing had been a test, she’d definitely failed it.

 

Taako nudged Kravitz, who spoke up, “I do like the idea of gardening, actually. We don’t have much yard, back there, though. Maybe something easy to start? I confess, I don’t know much about it, but.”

 

“Hm,” Merle looked Kravitz over, like he was getting his first real good look at the guy. As if they hadn’t all been over for that other dinner before, and for hours today, and also for most of their childhoods. “Guess I could get ya started with some herbs. Nothing like being able to get ‘em fresh.”

 

Kravitz nodded along with this, looking very agreeable. Taako hid a smile well enough that she was probably the only one to notice it. Maybe he did want fresh herbs on-hand, but didn’t want Merle knowing about it? Boys were dumb.

 

Lup got up to get another glass of sangria and refill Barry’s water. She was the designated not-driver, this time. If Merle had much more, they’d probably have to take him home, too. Which reminded her, “So what’s the long-term plan for the guest bedroom?”

 

“We’ll probably sell some of the furniture we don’t need, or find more permanent storage,” Kravitz shrugged. The townhouse wasn’t massive, being a townhouse, but it was easily enough space for two people.

 

“You’ll want to have that bed usable,” Merle said sagely, “Nothing worse than sleeping on the couch after a fight.”

 

The boys shared a look that said they totally understood that one.

 

“It’ll probably go back to being a guest room later,” Taako said, nibbling on a piece of now-cold pizza that he’d decided he did want after all, “I dunno. We haven’t really talked about it. Maybe it could be an office, or studio space?”

 

“It’s hard to convert that back into a bedroom, if you decide to get a kid later,” Merle said breezily, and they all turned to him like he’d grown another head. Taako, when Lup glanced back at him, was looking especially shaken by this totally innocuous idea their adoptive father had proposed. None of them were about to have biological kids, and obviously the twins had been adopted themselves, the idea of just suddenly adopting a child shouldn’t have been a scary thought for any of them.

 

But Merle must have noticed the way all of them went pale, and waved a hand, “Not that I’m expecting grandkids anytime soon, but y’know. Don’t wanna buy a big grand piano or whatever the hell, and then have to put _that_ in storage to make room for a bed again, later.”

 

“Right,” Barry said, and Lup took his speaking up as an opportunity to down her drink and stand.

 

“We ought to get going. This was fun.” She pulled Merle’s chair out for him, “C’mon, old man, let’s get out of Taako’s hair. Bakery’ll be closing up soon anyway, right? Go save your other children from having to get a fantasy Lyft.”

 

Lup gave Taako a little wave as she shepherded everyone out the front door, happy to see that Barry’d had the sense to grab their basket on the way out. Merle didn’t get a basket, since he hadn’t technically been invited, but she slipped him a few cookies for her siblings. Even though they’d been hanging out at the bakery for hours, with definite access to cookies.

 

She spared a glance back at the townhouse as Barry pulled away.

 

“Dad probably meant well, but gods,” she kicked her shoes off and put a bare foot up on the dash, “Day one of officially living together and someone suggests they should get a kid. At least if he was harassing us about that, we’d have plausibly talked about it.”

 

She and Barry had not, of course, actually talked about it. But they’d been married for years and dating for longer, they definitely could have talked about it. It just wasn’t the kind of conversation that came up naturally, what with her not being equipped to have a kid. She looked over to Barry, whose expression was thoughtful.

 

“No reason we couldn’t think about that, though. Sometime. Maybe not right now,” he conceded, but Lup watched him drive and watched his brain whirring as he thought about being a dad. She had to look away.

 

“Not right now,” she agreed gently, “But yeah. Sometime.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the idea of merle being okay with his kids being trans and gay without real judgement makes me emotional ok
> 
> probably gonna keep posting hmmm about every 12 hours or whatever  
> because  
> im excited ? i never stopped being excited  
> but im ready to work on other projects and it's mildly hard for me to focus on them when i'm still living in this one haha
> 
> that said, when it's done, ABSOLUTELY feel free to comment or send me asks or @ me about things you might want to see in a follow up. don't do that now bc you don't know the end but. at the end. yes.
> 
> I LOVE U have a nice rest of your day <3  
> (ps enough people requested that additional M scene that i'll do something for it. not sure what yet but. there's a good spot for it, hahaha)


	32. Losing My Edge

They stayed quiet for a few minutes after the other three left, Taako specifically because he didn’t know how to explain why his brain was just _yelling_ at him over the concept of taking in a kid. He _knew_ why, he wasn’t an idiot, but he didn’t know how to say anything about it without losing the plot.  


Kravitz was a lifesaver though, and just turned his chair and pulled him into a sideways hug at the empty dinner table, petting his hair.  


“You know he was just messing around, love,” he said, super gentle, like Kravitz thought he might break down in one way or another. This was fair, Taako guessed, because he felt pretty freaked out. “You know we don’t _have_ to do any of that. We could leave everything piled up in there, if we wanted. There’s no rush to do anything.”  


Taako nodded minutely against his chest, letting out a long breath. It took him gathering his thoughts over the next minutes to speak up with anything approaching confidence. “The part that’s fucking me up,” he said, “Is that… a weird part of me kind of _does_ want that? For some reason? Does that make sense?” Kravitz rubbed the back of Taako’s neck, soothing him somewhat. “Like, I don’t know why. Kids are horrible, and I hate them for sure, but like.”  


“I understand, I think.” Taako let himself be pulled into Kravitz’s lap. These chairs weren’t made for snuggling, but they were Magnus Burnsides originals that could totally handle their combined weight. Better than the computer chair, anyway. “Angus doesn’t need you to take him in, though.”  


Taako stiffened, “I didn’t say anything about Angus. Shut up. That’s not it.” He wanted to be mad at Kravitz for poking at the heart of the matter. At his heart, in this. He couldn’t dredge up anything more than annoyance, though, because he didn’t want to stop being held. Taako let out another long breath, not realizing he’d been holding onto it.  


“He’s your magic boy,” Kravitz said, then, like that explained everything. And Taako felt another stab of _something_ that he wanted to be anger, but was not anger, and. The words _your magic boy_ were the exact right ones to fuck him up. Taako felt his eyes start to swim. “Of course he’s special to you. He doesn’t have parents, either, so. My love, of course I understand.”  


“D-do you?” Taako bit out. “Because like. Magic a-fucking-side, there’s a reason I hang out with him.” He wanted to be able to stretch out and yell and pace, something about being held gentle but firm was making this conversation overwhelming. Like he couldn’t get all of the energy building up inside of him out. “His grandpa forgets so fucking much, Krav. Angus is always _starving_ now when I pick him up, only gets regular meals at _school_ and I know the old guy isn’t doing it on purpose but it’s gonna stunt his growth or his brain or something. And like, like, since I’m the weird fucking grown-ass elf who’s friends with this little kid, I can’t just show up at his house every day like here’s your three square meals, I’m not a creep I promise. Like every other week is not often enough to check up on him but I’m so _worried_ when I go get him. I try to send him home with at least a few meals worth of stuff he can heat up, and he’s so smart, I’m sure he’s got some system, but--”  


Taako took a long, shuddering breath, and then another, and then another, as Kravitz pet his hair carefully. He leaned into that touch, heaving a sob and trying to recover enough to finish his thought. It took a minute to get control of his breathing again, “I know I’m not ready to be a parent, not really. I just… I don’t know.”  


Kravitz kindly didn’t comment on whether or not he thought Taako was ready for that. This was kind of a lot, Taako guessed, for their first conversation after moving in together. Kravitz said, though, “I didn’t realize, about the food. Of course that’s scary. Maybe while I’m not working, I could check up on him more often for you? Take him some meals?” Fuck. Taako was crying again. “Shh, shh, I’m no Taako, but I could make him some things. Do you think we could teach him some more cooking, bring some simple groceries? If his grandpa isn’t feeding him, grandpa probably isn’t eating much, either…”  


Taako leaned up to kiss Kravitz’s cheek, a wordless  _thank you,_ and let himself be calmed down.

  


* * *

 

 

He came home from the bakery to find his boyfriend and his magic boy making pancakes in the kitchen.  


“Wow, guys. Genuinely impressed that nothing smells burnt in here,” Taako took in the state of the room. It was kind of a mess, but considering the neatly stacked pyramid of full fantasy tupperware containers, the mess was to be expected. There were at least three different meals that he could identify, and at least ten little containers. Enough to keep Angus and his grandpa fed for days, if needed.  


“We’ve been paying very close attention to the stove!” Angus announced, not looking up from where he was staring at a chocolate chip pancake. Kravitz had a spatula in hand beside the boy, and on Angus’s hand signal, Kravitz flipped the pancake over and they cheered at the golden brown color.  


Taako’s heart felt almost painfully full.  


He went into the pantry to find a sturdy bag to put all of these meals into, returning to find the pancakes all plated and Kravitz pulling butter and syrup out of the fridge. They’d made him a plate, too, which was nice. Taako’d stayed late getting schedules made and sent out, expecting that he’d be having leftovers when he got in. It was a strange sensation to walk into his own home smelling delicious, but not from something he’d made.  


“Looks good, let’s see how they taste,” he teased, cutting into the stack. They were tasty, of course. If you didn’t burn them, it was kind of hard to fuck up chocolate chip pancakes. He still announced that they were, “Hmm, just okay, I guess,” so they wouldn’t think he’d gone too soft.  


“I think they’re good, sir,” Angus said around a neatly cut bite.  


“Mmhm, Taako’s just jealous that we had a nice time this evening without him,” Kravitz was still up, putting a glass of milk by each plate, turning off the stove.  


“Shows what y’all know. You _thought_ you were having a nice time before, but you shoulda seen your faces when I walked in the room. The faces of some folks, just starving for Taako.”  


“Guilty.” Kravitz said, at the same time that Angus laughed.  


“I hope it’s okay that we used the kitchen, sir,” Angus said, remembering to swallow this time before speaking. “Kravitz said it was okay, but I know you care a lot about your setup, so we were very careful.”  


Taako waved a hand, “The house ain’t burned down, we just gotta get cleaning before taking you home. I don’t want to come back and have to leave everything to soak.”  


“I’ll clean, since we made the mess,” Kravitz offered, “Angus should probably be getting back after pancakes, anyway, if you’d rather drive him, love.”  


Taako considered Kravitz’s trustworthiness with his pans, did some mental math on it, and then nodded, “Sounds good.”  


They finished eating, though it took a little while with Taako forcing Angus to take a second portion. The kid was growing, and what was the point of this if he sent him home hungry? Angus politely turned down a third helping and lent a hand to Taako with taking the packed up leftovers out to the car.  


Taako felt his heart do another funny flutter thing when Angus scurried back up to the house to thank and hug Kravitz for hanging out with him all evening. He didn’t _want_ to kidnap the kid for good, but they really did need to find more excuses to have him around. It was good for Angus, too.  


In the car, Angus played with the straps on his backpack, and said to Taako, “I know you guys are worried about me, and, um. I think I’ll be okay, but I really do appreciate the help. I get breakfast and lunch at school, but it’s hard to get to the store, and, um. These will help. Thank you, sir.”  


Taako bit his lip, “S’nothing, bubala. We’re just looking out for you. Just. You’ll call if you run out or something, right? You know Kravitz has a lot of free time right now, one of us could come over anytime you need.” He glanced over to Angus, who discreetly wiped at one of his eyes. _You and me both, kid,_ he thought. “You okay, pumpkin?”  


“I’m just happy. You and Mr. Kravitz are both so kind to me, sir, and. It’s nice to have friends." And then, after a sniffle, "I’m glad you and him are getting along, I think it’s good for you like it is for me. To have a support system. Have people who care.”

 

“Lup’s been there for me all along, but... I get what you mean, little dude. I’m happy, too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> that's probably as close to an "i love you kid" as taako's gonna get :'(
> 
> now honestly, im gonna  
> explain  
> my feelings here  
> and mainly they are: i hate it when angus's grandpa dies and someone needs to adopt him  
> and yet: i clearly also set it up where that could happen, or at the very least he's not a competent caregiver at this point  
> i'm not sure i like the solutions i wrote about in this one, or in a future one, but. i don't know. i'm wrangling with that dual issue of "i want angus to have two loving dads" vs "im gonna kill angus's family in order to make that happen"  
> like it's a bullshit thing to do??? at least with that intent??  
> it's also bullshit to give his grandpa fuckin dementia. sorry. im. hrm. anyway.
> 
> i guess the thing is, i didn't need to say any of this. i just struggled with how this whole angus storyline needed to go, and it's one of the only storylines that i feel weirdly bad about. i love the magic boy. sigh.


	33. Ready for the Floor

It was reckoning day. Kravitz adjourned orchestra practice early so that he could formally announce their first real show’s information to the group. _Yes_ , it was all going to be posted on the website, and _yes_ on the event page, and also, _yes_ on the main fantasy facebook page for the group. It _would_ be linked on the fantasy twitter page. Presale tickets would be up in two days, with that link going up on every page, _yes._  


The group was all abuzz with the idea of playing before an _audience,_ again _._ If he was being honest, that idea was still thrilling Kravitz, too. Barry and Lup came up to join him as some of the others started to pack up and clear out.  


“Congrats,” Barry grinned, “Does it feel real, yet?”  


“It probably won’t until we’ve already finished the show,” Kravitz confessed, running a hand up through his hair. “Maybe not even then? I felt like I’d forgotten how it all works, so until we’re all out there and it’s _happening…_ It might as well be a dream, yeah?”  


“I’m kinda surprised this group is all that into it, tee-bee-aych,” Lup said, scanning around the room.  


“Helps that it’s the same time as practices usually are,” Barry pointed out, “And who’d turn down the opportunity to make a few bucks if you were gonna come play anyway?”  


“Not I,” Lup declared, hand on her heart, “I’m gonna buy me a new pair of shoes with music money.”  


Kravitz chuckled, offering Brad a wave as the orc started out the door, “Well, if the first one goes well, it’ll be a nice little side income for you both, I’m sure.”  


“For sure.” Barry looked thoughtful as they started to leave, too, “Hey, Krav, is there a dress code?”  


“Candlenights best should be alright,” Kravitz said, and then thinking better of it, “If you must wear denim, make it black. Please.” Barry shot him a noncommittal shrug, and Kravitz pleaded, “I’ll take you shopping, if I have to, Barry. No blue pants.”  


“It’s his _name,”_ Lup mock-gasped, “Are you discriminating against my husband? For shame, Mister Conductor.”  


“I’m going to post a genuine dress code. I’m going to _text you the link,_ Barry, and you’re going to follow it.” Kravitz continued, even as they started to part ways to their separate cars in the parking lot, “I swear, this is _not a goof,_ Barry.” His friend, his best non-Highchurch friend in this world, kept fucking shrugging. Kravitz was going to strangle him if he showed up in crisp blue pants to their concert.  


Kravitz checked his phone as he got into the car, frowning at the message he’d missed.  


18:32  
Taako: _gonna be at work a while still, have fun at music time <3_  


That had been two hours ago, so maybe Taako was done now? He texted back to ask, and got a response right away.  


20:35  
Taako: _no still here. almost done tho_  


Kravitz: _Got anything stale I can help you get rid of?_  


Taako: _idk why youd wanna do that when i make you fresh shit all the time but knock urself out lol_  


Kravitz: _I’ll be right over. :)_  


The sign in the window was flipped over to _Closed_ and he had to knock on the door to get Taako to let him in. He dragged the chair from behind the register around to the little closet that functioned as Taako’s “office,” deciding that the plate of cream puffs on the corner of Taako’s desk was for him.  


“I should get an actual accountant,” Taako sighed, while Kravitz enjoyed a puff.  


“I’m probably not much better at math, but I can take a look if you want?” he offered.  


“No, I’ve got it sorted out now, but it took hours to figure out what I’d fucked up.” Taako reached down to power down the little desktop computer, “Have fun at practice?”  


“Mmhm,” Kravitz hummed, mouth full. He swallowed, “Only one person’s declined to come to the show, and it’s because they already had a plane ticket out of town. They’re all really excited.”  


Taako perked up, “That’s so great, babe! I _knew_ you could do it.” Kravitz couldn’t even hear an _attempt_ at sounding sarcastic in there. It made his face warm to know Taako really did support him. In more ways than one (though his pride was still grappling with the money one, honestly).  


“Well, we’ll see how the presale goes,” Kravitz hedged.  


“Nope, no negging here, I’m gonna fuckin’...” Taako stood up to look at the calendar on the wall, zeroing in on Concert Day, and taking a big red fantasy sharpie to it. “There, we’re closed, Taako and Ren and Joaquin and Mavis, all definitely going to a concert. Or they’re fired.”  


Kravitz barked out a laugh, “You’re going to fire yourself?”  


“If I don’t show up, _definitely,_ ” Taako chucked the marker across the desk, “And let’s see, if Mavis comes, I can get Mookie and Merle on board. Hurley and Sloane will definitely come, for you, and Magnus and Julia, natch,” Taako had all ten fingers on his hands extended. “That’s a minimum of ten tickets sold, and that’s if nobody but you had any friends. But those other dudes have friends too, and your mom, and everyone! Guess we should leave some seats for the general public, or else what’s the point in this, but like. You’re so good and I dunno about those other chucklefucks, but I’m so fucking proud of you, Kravitz. This shit is gonna be _great_ . Now let’s get out of here.”  


Kravitz’s jaw hurt a little for smiling, because a dazzling, positive, ranting Taako just _did_ that to him. He stood to drag the chair back toward the front counter. When he got back to the office, Taako was turning off the light and locking the door, and the elf was so pretty and soft and perked up, even though he was probably dead tired from working all day.  


“What’re you going to tell your regulars?” Kravitz asked, taking the cream puff plate over to the dishwasher for someone else to deal with tomorrow. It wasn’t noticeably dirty, it’d be fine. He also didn’t know how the dishwasher worked.  


“Hmm…” Taako’s eyes drifted upward, and then snapped back as he snapped his fingers, “Got it! I’ll draft up a nice-ass message for the front window, say that I closed up to make plans for the new location.” His hands spread as he said this, wiggling his fingers.  


Kravitz felt his eyebrows jump up, “You already found a spot for it? Or?”  


Taako laughed, “Yep, it’s not even a lie. Your mom helped me scope it out. Nothing official yet, though. We’ll see. But as far as customers need to know, totally not a lie.”  


“Lots of reasons to celebrate,” Kravitz pulled Taako into a hug, smiling into his boyfriend’s french braid.  


He felt Taako squeeze him tight around the middle, and then let go. “C’mon, we should get going.”  


Kravitz didn’t let go, laughing as Taako wriggled, “What’s got you in such a big hurry?”  


Taako pushed at his chest with a huff, “What, you _don’t_ wanna go home and make out?”  


“We could do that here,” Kravitz started, and then laughed harder when Taako smacked his arm.  


“Like a _little bit_ of kissing is okay, maybe, sometimes, but _my dude,_ I prepare _food_ in here, don’t be an _animal!!_ ”  


Kravitz let him go, still laughing, and they managed to finish locking up and getting out the door without incident, Taako driving behind Kravitz back home. Kravitz idly wondered about whether they really needed two cars, at this point, but if they already had them… the freedom of not having to always go to the same places at the same time was good. He couldn’t help thinking that he could just drop off and pick up Taako at work without much trouble, though.  


At home, the promised make-outs were as lovely as ever, and dinner was reheated leftovers but that was alright. Taako clearly needed an early night, despite the talk of celebrating, so Kravitz ran a bath and offered to wash his hair for him. Taako agreed immediately, pouring them each a glass of wine and fishing a space heater out of the closet to make the bathroom extra toasty.  


“So it’s totally normal to be scared and excited at the same time, right? Just short of freaking out. I feel like I've said that before, but like...” Taako asked, and Kravitz couldn’t help smiling at how casually Taako could talk while the elf was leaning hard into his hand. Washing his hair wasn’t so hard, but avoiding scratching and rubbing at his ears was difficult. It was easy to get distracted, going down that route. More than one bathtime had had to detour due to careless ear-scritches.  


“I think so. There’s a lot of stuff riding on the things we get excited about,” Kravitz said, coaxing Taako into at least leaning the other way for a minute so he could work shampoo into the other side, “There might not be enough business on the other side of town, for the bakery. Might not be enough interest to have a full series of concerts, to continue it beyond this year. But I’m still looking forward to those things, even though they might not go right.”  


Taako nodded, leaning over to fill up the old plastic measuring cup that’d been repurposed for hair rinsing. He passed it back and leaned forward to let Kravitz pour it over his head.  


“Last time I was this nervous and excited, it was about us moving in together,” Taako admitted, reaching for the conditioner to pass that back to Kravitz too, “And before that, it was us starting dating.”  


“So, according to the trend, everything should go off without a hitch?” Kravitz offered, working the conditioner into the length of Taako’s hair before lightly coating the portion around the top of his head.  


“If we’re lucky,” Taako turned around to cross his arms on the edge of the tub, resting his head on them and facing Kravitz. Kravitz had taken his clothes off, in case of the event of Taako pulling him into the bathtub, but was toasty enough on the bathmat to be comfortable.  


Kravitz leaned in to kiss Taako’s forehead, and bumped his nose against Taako’s wet one, “So far, in most things, I think we’ve been pretty lucky.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sweet sweet nervous excited boys
> 
> i love the idea that they share a lot of their bathing times, even if it's not always gonna be sexy stuff  
> casual nudity is just... very good?  
> thanks for coming to my happy-comfortable-couple ted talk  
> (for the record, though, taako probably did pull krav into the tub after that scene)
> 
> yep just gonna keep updating approx every 12 hours, so i dont have to worry about updates during spring break time, in which i'll be Dead from Working :) lol
> 
> ENJOY, THANK FOR THIS, i love you <3  
> (ps coming up on 300 kudos?? i die)


	34. Return to the Moon

“What’s today?” Taako quizzed Angus as the kid buckled up in the back seat.

 

“It’s Music Day!” Angus cheered, and the kid was dressed _up_ for this thing. He had a real nice little fancy boy suit on, and his hair was as neat as Taako’d ever seen it.

 

“That’s right, little man, we’re sacrificing Magic Day for Music Day this time, and Krav is gonna owe us a big one for sure.”

 

Taako’d had hours to get himself all dressed up nice, as the live-in boyfriend of the man of the hour for this thing. It was also a much more public situation than that nice restaurant had been weeks ago, in terms of _debuting_ the relationship. But. Tonight wasn’t about Taako, and for once, he was at total peace with the idea that people should _not_ be looking at him above others. He was going to show up, be aggressively helpful, and then enjoy a (hopefully) incredible show.

 

The theater they’d secured for this thing was already hopping when they got there, and it took ten minutes and some grumbling through parallel parking to find an acceptably close spot. The boots Taako was wearing weren’t super comfortable, but he’d guessed he’d be doing some standing up at this thing, so they weren’t going to tear up his feet either. The couple of blocks they walked back up to the venue weren’t so bad.

 

When they got in, Johann waved them over from a little table, looking a little panicked, “I really need to get backstage, Kravitz said you guys could help out? Sorry about this…” There was already a line slowly backing up from the table. Taako nodded through a rundown on how to look up who’d pre-bought a ticket, taking up Johann’s seat behind the table. Angus grabbed a stack of programs and started handing them out without Taako even having to ask.

 

The list of presale tickets made Taako’s head swim a little bit. They couldn’t have had that many open seats available for walk-up tickets, if they’d already done this many ahead of time…

 

He spent what felt like forever cross-checking names and handing out stubs and occasionally selling a ticket himself. It took extra-long because a good portion of these people either knew him from the bakery, or the internet, or high school, or rarely as Kravitz’s boyfriend. He shook so many goddamn hands. He’d done a quick regular-polish manicure earlier in the day, since he’d dropped off Kravitz so early to come organize stuff, and yeah he was going to have to take it off later, but it felt weird that so many strangers were touching and complimenting his hand before Kravitz got to see him.

 

Eventually, Angus ran out of fliers and the lobby went quiet, the few people still milling around probably worked there or were going to the bathroom. Taako tugged Angus’s wrist over so that he could check the kid’s watch. “We should get in there.”

 

As Angus nodded and they got up to head toward the doors, Taako had a thought.

 

“I forgot to set our tickets aside. Shhhhoot. Dang. Okay, pumpkin, we might have to stand off to the side or something. Sorry. Guess Krav got double-paid for those tickets, whoops.”

 

“That’s okay, sir. Mistakes happen,” Angus said, sounding very patient and wise for a twerp. Taako resisted the urge to rustle the kid’s hair, pushing the door open just enough for the two of them to slip inside. Luckily, things hadn’t popped off just yet.

 

Taako let Angus lead the way up and up to where they could stand in an aisle against the back wall and not be in anybody’s way. It was a pretty terrible view of the stage, but. They’d be able to hear better than if they were out in the lobby. Kinda sucked to have to stand the whole time, though. The slightly-comfortable boots could’ve stood to be actually-comfortable boots.

 

When Angus, being a kid with a different sense of decorum (not arguably better or worse), sat down on the top step of the aisle, Taako shrugged and joined him. Tonight, he’d worn pants, so he wouldn’t have to worry about anybody looking up the aisle and into a skirt.

 

Taako spaced out, and sound started up, and the crowd quieted entirely. Kravitz seemed about an inch high, so far away, but Taako still smiled at the sight of his back.

 

The songs were a good mix of classics, tried and true arrangements that people definitely enjoyed, and original songs. Kravitz played one of Taako’s favorites, one that he’d confessed to loving in a moment of weakness, and Taako was immediately glad for his waterproof makeup. He’d seen it coming, this time, and prepared. He wasn’t the only one blinking back tears, even as he just glanced around at the other people on this back aisle.

 

Angus was a good and sweet boy who offered Taako a handkerchief to dry his eyes partway through. Even though he’d expected to cry, this was different than the first time he cried at hearing Kravitz’s music played in full. It was an even more _full_ experience: there were hundreds of other people here to appreciate what was happening on stage. All of them had come here, had bought a ticket, had sat in a seat, to watch this barely professional but _enthusiastic_ orchestra play. They’d dressed up, and Taako had seen the excitement and curiosity in so many of the faces he’d had to smile at beforehand. They were here for Kravitz, whether they knew him or not, and it _mattered._

 

The music itself was stronger, too: Barry and Lup weren’t the only new-and-talented additions to the group in the last couple of months, and the idea that these were basically amateurs playing for fun was _wild_ to someone like Taako. He couldn’t wrap his head around music, not in the way his friends and family did. He didn’t have the words to appreciate what he was hearing. Maybe it was more real that way: like showing up to an art gallery and just knowing you loved what you saw, without knowing _why_ you loved it. Ultimately, though, Taako did know why he loved it, this time. Why he’d love it even if the music wasn’t good, even if this was all wrong and none of these people in the audience liked what they heard.

 

Before, when he’d seen Kravitz play in the old high school auditorium, still wearing a polo from Wave Echo Music, his hair pulled back loose and casual, it had been so different between them. It’d been the first time he’d seen Kravitz in years. He realized, now, that they’d managed to dance just out of sight of each other at Barry and Lup’s wedding, managed to just miss each other so many times in the near-decade between graduation and deciding to talk. At that practice he’d hidden at, he’d been overwhelmed by the idea of talking to Kravitz at all, at maybe going out for coffee with him. Now they had joint custody of a coffee maker and woke up under the same sheets.

 

He was crying, and overwhelmed, but more with pride than fear. None of these people really understood how much this meant to Kravitz, to get him back onto his feet. Taako felt alone in that, and yet there were just. _Bodies._ All of them, they mattered, they were the reason this could matter.

 

It felt like forever and no time at all, when the thing ended and Kravitz, tiny and far away but the only thing Taako could see, turned to bow. He lifted a hand up just in case the half-elf on stage wanted to find him, but there had to be a lot running through his boy’s head right now. There was a lot for Taako too, and this wasn’t even _his_ moment.

 

Taako pulled Angus up so that they could scurry out ahead of most of the guests, taking up their post in the lobby again so that they could play psuedo-hosts. Angus was very helpful, having memorized the website and contact info, but most of the people wanted to come up and talk to Taako about that. It was overwhelming, how many nicely dressed orcs and elves and humans and halflings came up and congratulated him and wanted information on the next concert. Wanted to hire the group for some private event or another, wanted to be involved.

 

Their friends in attendance all checked in with him before heading out, the ones he hadn’t seen in a while congratulating him on “bagging someone so talented” or “talking to Kravitz like a big boy” (thanks, Carey and Killian). Raven and Istus gave him a warm hug.

 

He’d thought handing out tickets was exhausting. Taako had honestly thought that, between he and Angus, they had enough charisma to just keep on being gregarious all night. But the relief when most of the guests had left, or were mingling amongst themselves, was palpable. Angus had gone to sit behind the ticket table and looked like he was about to fall asleep on top of an almost emptied stack of business cards. Taako almost went to join him, but a kid falling asleep in public was a lot cuter than a grown-ass elf doing the same.

 

And then Kravitz appeared at the doorway, craning his head to find them. He looked so fucking happy. Taako felt himself smiling, but was so fucking tired. He blinked and realized he’d spaced out, and now he was being held against Kravitz’s chest. Taako closed his eyes, “You did so good, Krav. Bet your phone’s gonna blow up from all the people who wanted to email you.”

 

“I’m still in shock,” Kravitz said, and let go of him to help Angus up. It was lucky that Kravitz seemed to be running on adrenaline, or actual energy, since Taako felt like he could just about curl up on the floor.

 

Kravitz stole the car keys from Taako’s purse and walked them both out to the car under their sleepy directions, and Taako didn’t remember going by Angus’s house but the next thing he knew, they were home, and Angus wasn’t in the backseat anymore.

 

“Do you need help getting out, love?” Kravitz asked, when he opened Taako’s door. Taako shook his head, but the second he was out of the car he had his arms around Kravitz’s neck, demanding to be carried. Kravitz laughed, and where was his energy coming from, that wasn’t fair, and pulled Taako’s legs up around his waist to hold him steady.

 

Taako wanted to be kissing him and stuff, they should be celebrating. Instead he just held on, happy that Kravitz was willing to carry him in. The boots had really been a bad choice, he’d had to do way more standing than he’d expected.

 

He didn’t want to let go when Kravitz set him down on the couch, but did because Kravitz gently asked him to. He felt his boots get pulled off and curled up with a contented sigh.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> a couple of sleepy boys, and a not so sleepy boy  
> i still don't know anything about music, there's a reason it's always taako POV, who also doesn't know about music  
> but lol hopefully i got some emotions across anyways
> 
> i also wrote that M scene for y'all so chapter 37 is now 3k instead of 1.5k. i hope ur happy lol (i think this one was a little long, too? but that makes sense)  
> so look forward to that in a few days i guess lol
> 
> thank u, friends, i love you and hope you have a nice night <3


	35. The Best is Yet To Come

Kravitz wanted to just do what Taako wanted them to do, which was lie down and snuggle on the couch, but he was just way too keyed up. He felt like he needed to go for a jog or do a flip or something, and neither of those things would be great for his suit.

 

So first thing’s first, Kravitz went to change into something more comfortable. He borrowed a pair of Taako’s elastic-waistband pajama shorts, because for once in his life he wasn’t cold, and put on a soft t-shirt. He washed his face and stretched and came out to check on Taako again.

 

Taako, the elf who loved and supported him for this awesome (in both the _scary_ and _great_ meanings of the word) thing, was still curled up on the couch. He could hear soft snoring and it made his heart squeeze with how much he loved him.

 

Kravitz went to get comfier clothes for Taako, too. It took some doing to get his fitted white trousers off, but Taako barely roused at all when they were replaced with sweatpants. He left Taako’s blouse, because it was soft, at least, and pulled a blanket up over the tired elf.

 

He regretted, just a little bit, not coming out to the lobby sooner. In the back, he and his friends had been celebrating and talking and cleaning up while the guests trickled out. He hadn’t really thought very much about how Taako was going to try and hype him up to every potential client in the area. He’d have to thank Taako later, when he was awake.

 

For now, he figured he could take care of dinner in thanks.

 

At this point, he felt pretty comfortable in making some things. They’d had a lot of meals together, and Taako would definitely be more efficient on his own, but almost always included Kravitz in the process of cooking. Even if it was just busy work, or keeping an eye on a pot, or stirring a saucepan at steady intervals… Taako let him learn the processes, patiently corrected him on herbs and oils and flavor profiles. Kravitz felt, with some confidence, that he could get his excess energy out and make something tasty at the same time.

 

He looked into the fridge to see what they had lying around. Most of the fresh stuff had some purpose already, since they’d made a (suggested) meal plan earlier in the week. Kravitz checked on their bread situation and decided to do some cheese-and-crab baguettes. One of the many benefits of the bakery was that Taako was constantly bringing home leftover bread and sweets. Kravitz had had to actually start working out again, to keep up. But there was almost always basically-fresh bread on hand.

 

This wasn’t going to be the most sophisticated meal: the crab was actually imitation crab, and he picked mozzarella cheese mainly for its gooey properties. Olives seemed ok for something like this. And pesto? Maybe crab wasn’t the best choice, for this psuedo-fantasy-Italian dish, but he got the little baguettes filled up with stuff and wrapped them in foil, popping them into the oven to melt.

 

Kravitz had a glass of wine while he waited on that, going out to sit in the living room with a still-snoring Taako. Hopefully he could convince his boyfriend to wake up long enough to eat, but if he had to carry Taako to bed, it’d be alright. He kept having this stronger than usual surge of love and warmth in his chest, when he glanced over to Taako’s sleeping face.

 

This whole thing, getting back on the proverbial horse, had been such an unknown. It was still terrifying, when he thought about it, but it was going to _work,_ this time. He could feel the tangible difference in the atmosphere at the theater, the raw interest that hadn’t been there before.

 

Before, five years back when they’d tried this before, it had all been his mother. She’d arranged the venue, hired hands to work the lobby, called around to friends and talked him up at her parties. That had been kind of her. It had felt like actual success, at least at first. But it hadn’t been real, and she hadn’t meant to hurt him by coddling him, but it hadn’t been _real._

 

This time, and he couldn’t even really articulate the difference, but this time… it was real. The people there had come mostly because they’d wanted to: he knew that a few of their friends had probably shown up out of obligation, instead, but every stranger there was excited to be there. He hadn’t seen their faces, but he’d heard the applause and thrill when the show was over. He’d missed that feeling so deeply, that feeling of doing this thing he loved and doing it _well_. It was overwhelming.

 

He knocked back the last couple of sips of his wine glass and rose from the chair to kneel by Taako’s head. Kravitz carefully started the process of finding and removing pins from Taako’s hair, knowing that they’d have to come out sooner or later, and that Taako would be very upset in the morning to realize he’d slept with them all in.

 

Five pins into the process, Taako sighed and opened an eye at him, “We put the boy away, yeah?”

 

“Yes, love. Angus got home safe.”

 

“That’s good,” Taako rolled over to give Kravitz better access to his hair, one ear flicking toward him like it wanted to be touched. Kravitz ignored that for now, knowing it was probably an involuntary thing, and continued to carefully undo Taako’s hair. He’d gotten pretty good at helping Taako avoid waking up with a rat’s nest of hair, though he even loved how Taako looked on those days, waking up all messy.

 

“Are you hungry, Taako?” He asked, running his fingers through the length of Taako’s hair to check for hidden pins. He didn’t find any, but kept carding his hand through it anyway. He felt Taako nod.

 

“Guess I could get up and do something,” Taako muttered, rolling back over and stretching out his legs. He glanced down, and then up. Taako blinked owlishly at Kravitz, “Did you change my pants for me? Nobody believes me when I tell them you’re a pervert.” Kravitz sat back on his heels as Taako pulled himself up. “But we both know, huh?”

 

“I’ve got sandwiches cooking,” Kravitz said helpfully, using the coffee table to prop himself back up and stand beside Taako.

 

Taako's eyes flicked down at Kravitz’s borrowed shorts and he very pointedly mouthed the word _pervert,_ before breaking off into a still-tired grin, “How long was I out, if you started cooking on your own? Didn’t mean to leave you hangin’ like that.”

 

“Mm, maybe an hour?” The oven timer beeped, and Kravitz went to deal with that, a curious Taako trailing in behind him. “It’s really no trouble, though I’m sure you’ll find plenty wrong with what I made,” Kravitz laughed, unwrapping the golden, crispy sandwiches.

 

Taako looked around him with interest, “Dunno if you can go wrong with crusty, cheesy bread, baby.” Kravitz got everything on plates and refilled his wine glass, offering to get a glass for Taako, who shook his head, “We shoulda been popping champagne bottles to celebrate. Sorry again for passing out on you. I should’ve smooched your brains out when you came out to get us.”

 

Kravitz made a shushing noise and poured Taako some water instead, “I’m not upset at all. And Angus wouldn’t have appreciated having to witness that.”

 

“Pssh.” Taako dug into his sandwich and chewed thoughtfully. “Crab? Huh. Hmm.”

 

Kravitz, for his part, was really proud of himself. It was warm and gooey and savory and good. The olives broke up the flavor some, and the pesto got along fine with the cheese. It was maybe a unique comfort food, but he liked it. A year ago, or even four months ago, he might not have had the confidence to just put things together and turn the oven on without instructions.

 

“Not bad, music man,” Taako decided, and continued to eat. When they’d both finished and Taako was sipping on his water, “Maybe another green in there, next time, but that was actually pretty okay.”

 

Kravitz blushed and cleared their plates. _Pretty okay_ and _not bad_ were practically glowing praise, when it came to Taako and food. “I learned from the best?” Kravitz shrugged, and they went back to the living room so that they could tuck in closer on the couch. Kravitz was half-turned so that Taako could lean into his chest, playing with the elf's ears gently enough to just get content noises instead of needy ones.

 

Taako was playing on his phone, flicking through comments people had left on the event page for the concert. Kravitz pulled out his own phone after reading over Taako’s shoulder for a minute, and froze. He had… just so many notifications.

 

His phone had been on silent, and then he’d been distracted, and now his whole device was just overflowing with emails from potential clients and emails from people donating money and emails from old classmates and. It was a lot. Taako craned his neck to get a look, “Hachi _machi_ … oh wow. You’re gonna be _glued_ to the computer tomorrow, babe.”

 

Kravitz was overwhelmed by looking at the numbers, so he put his phone down and wrapped his arms around Taako. The elf laughed a little, putting his hands over Kravitz’s, “It’s a lot, right? I didn’t know what to do when the bakery took off too fast. I didn’t have the supplies on hand to keep up with demand… had to close early a lot, so people wouldn’t come by and be mad that everything was sold out.” Kravitz sighed into the elf’s hair. “It might be harder here, since I’m sure some of your people have full time jobs. Can’t always be available. But you’ve got this, Krav.”

 

Kravitz nodded and relaxed a little.

 

“I’ve got you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> confession/admission: that's not krav's comfort sandwich, it's MY comfort sandwich. if you like fake crab, can't go wrong with cheesy melty pesto crab sandwich. (my mom puts veggies on it for some reason, but)  
> (i also usually don't make it at home, i order it at which wich, lol)
> 
> ANYWAY  
> i'm glad the last chapter resonated with y'all, i wasn't sure i'd gotten the mmmm the weight of the moment, of the love and the progress and the relief, i wasn't sure i'd gotten that right. guess i did ok lol!  
> (PS who said the last line this chapter? Whichever One You Want)
> 
> i'm gonna post up something decidedly nsfw in the next day or two i think, bc i finished the first chapter. i'd love for y'all to read it BUT i guess be prepared that i'm challenging myself to do something less fluffy after this one, haha (i promise, that i'm weak, and it will eventually devolve into love and fluff anyway)
> 
> thanks to everyone on tfw and also on the other one (wink) for being really rad and chill  
> i love everyone in this fandom  
> including you <3  
> (ESPECIALLY IF YOU'RE THIS DEEP IN MY FIC??????? I LOVE YOU!!!!!!! I KNOW I SAY IT EVERY TIME BUT LMAO IT'S TRUE)


	36. Laughter Lines

They were having a lazy Sunday. It was technically makeup Magic Day, so Angus was over, but Taako had convinced the boy to let it be Cooking Day. He didn’t want to go out and leave the house, because Kravitz was noodling on his keyboard and Taako loved it.

 

It was a shame that they had to make him plug in headphones while they recorded a new video with Angus in it for the channel. Like, what was the point. In anything. Angus made it worthwhile, though. He was a natural at this, just the right amount of kid innocence and just the right amount of smarty-pants sass. They didn’t even need to script anything. Taako just had to reign in his tendency to cuss for laughs, since the idea was to let kids watch these ones…

 

He wasn’t sure that kids actually  _ would,  _ but. He didn’t think it was right to basically use Angus for views and not let kids like Angus watch it. He was paying the kid, though, in money as well as food, and Angus soaked up the praise and cooking know-how like a sponge.

 

Taako sent the kid out to tell Kravitz to blast the music again when they were done, and started on washing dishes. Angus came back (and the piano kicked back on), and munched on one of the cookies they’d made.

 

“Have you been practicing your wizardly magicks?” Angus asked him, kicking his legs on a tall stool.

 

“It’s not Magic Day,” Taako said, “But, uh, yeah. A little bit. There’s been a lot going on.”

 

“I’ve been practicing on teachers at school, to see when they’re lying or when they need a break. I can get through about half of the day before I get tired, now!”

 

“That’s great! Be careful, though, pumpkin. If they realize you’re trying to read their minds, it’s gonna freak them out.” Taako dried his hands and retrieved the little pebble he’d been practicing with from his apron. He hadn’t messed with it much  _ mostly  _ because it lived in his at-home apron, but instead of being solid stone, the inside was clear (crystal, maybe) and the outside edge was a marbled red. It looked cool, but was the product of at least a dozen attempts to just change the thing over and over again.

 

“Wow, sir! That’s the rock we found outside? What even is it?”

 

“It’s a Taako original,” Taako let out a huff. “I’m gonna try for gold, this time. Or diamond, though I dunno about you, but I’m not sure we could tell the difference between crystal and diamond just by looking.”

 

“Oh, I could,” Angus chirped, “You’ve got to learn a lot of gemstone identification if you’re going to solve any crimes involving burglaries and-or heists.”

 

“Yeah, yeah,” Taako hummed, and focused on gold. Crystal to diamond seemed like a more simple route, or stone to metal, but they’d be able to easily say ‘that’s not gold’ if it didn’t look like it.

 

The music from the living room swelled, and like everything Kravitz did for him, something rough chipped away in his chest. Focus. Gold. Love.  _ Kravitz. _

 

Angus stared at his hands when Taako opened his eyes, and Taako opened his hands to find… something not unlike a little nugget of gold.

 

“Sir! You did it! What did you do different?”

 

Taako turned the stone over in his hands, not sure that it wasn’t maybe pyrite, but still pleased. “Y’know how usually I’m thinking really hard about it?” Angus nodded. “Maybe we should think less hard about it. Or something. It seems like I’m always making progress when I stop trying.”

 

“That sounds like quitter talk, sir,” Angus frowned, but seemed like he understood what Taako meant.

 

“I guess I just mean,” Taako dragged his braid around his shoulder so he could play with the end of it, “We shouldn’t act like we know the right way to do this stuff, kid. It’s a learning thing for both of us. I don’t think Lup’s even  _ tried  _ to figure out how her fire works, beyond suppressing it.”

 

“So you’re saying we should have more magic lessons?” Angus bounced, and Taako rolled his eyes.

 

“That’s not what I’m saying, but. Well, it couldn’t hurt. We’ll have to ask your grandpa, first.”

 

And that would have to be okay.   
  
Taako had done some soul searching, in the last couple of weeks, and realized that… ultimately, Kravitz was right. For now, anyway. They weren’t really fit to be taking the kid in in any permanent way, neither married nor definitively  _ stable _ . And Angus had his grandpa still. Even though Grandpa McDonald was probably going to be increasingly unfit, the options were realistically… let Angus stay with his family, where they could help and see him, or report that and have him likely put into the system.

 

Taako hated the idea of Angus having to do anything on his own, because he was a kid. A kid shouldn’t have to stress about money or food. But. Unless they could convince someone like Magnus or Merle to take in this child they didn’t even know, those were the options Taako could put together.

 

The doorbell rang, and Taako took a beat to realize that it wasn’t some weird music sample mixed into Kravitz’s playing.

 

He opened the front door and was immediately assaulted by one of Magnus’s dogs, knocked back on his ass. Magnus was scolding and restraining the thing as Taako turned the nametag by his face over. Fisher? Dumb name for a dog.

 

“I’m going to press charges, you know,” Taako huffed, standing and wondering if he wasn’t going to have some huge bruise on his ass, now.

 

“Good to see you too, Taako. I was in the neighborhood, y’know, walking Fisher, so I thought I’d drop by.”

 

“Magnus, you live twenty miles away, dumbass. I can see your truck. Just tell me when you’re coming over. Do you want a cookie?” Taako said all of this with his best malice-dripped voice.

 

Kravitz laughed from the living room and waved when Magnus stepped inside.

 

“Is that a dog? Hello, sir! I’m Angus McDonald, the world’s gre-” and then Fisher was off the leash in Taako’s house, stampeding into his magic boy. Taako winced as the dog just went to town licking Angus’s face.

 

“Nice to meet’cha, Ango. I’m Magnus.” Taako couldn’t fathom why Magnus was here, other than to spy on them. He wasn’t looking forward to their extended friend group knowing that he and Kravitz had a child over, for any reason. Krav was a known softie, but Taako had a reputation he’d like to maintain.

 

“So, what did you want, Magnus?” Taako asked as he went back to the kitchen, retrieving a little fantasy tupperware and placing a few of the uglier cookies into it.

 

“Oh, uh, nothing much. Just stopping by.” Nobody replied to that, so Magnus fidgetted and continued, “I guess I was wondering if you guys were gonna RSVP for the reunion. It sounds like a lot of fun.”

 

Taako made eye contact with Kravitz as he wandered back into the living room, having what he hoped was an accurate silent conversation. Kravitz spoke up, “We’ll do that tomorrow, thanks for the reminder.” And Taako smiled, passing Magnus the to-go cookies. They hadn’t discussed whether this one successful concert counted as  _ good enough  _ to go brag about it in front of their friends, but he was happy that Kravitz seemed more willing to go with him. Taako couldn’t show up without his boyfriend.

 

They sent Magnus and his dog monster on their way, and Kravitz stood up from the keyboard to stretch.

 

“Nooo, more music, play all day,” Taako protested, mostly trying to make Kravitz laugh. It worked.

 

“I think I worked out how that one’s gonna go. Hm.” He watched his boyfriend cast his gaze around the room. “I just realized, I haven’t recorded anything since moving here.”

 

“Huh. No shit,” Taako’s brain was already thinking about framing, or where they should move the keyboard to in order to make a pretty shot of his pretty boyfriend. “I wanna help.” He announced. His microphones still probably wouldn’t be good enough for music, though a little keyboard was probably easier to capture than an organ or whatever, but. His equipment would  _ definitely  _ kick the ass of a cell phone microphone and camera, for sure.

 

“Let me do this first,” his boyfriend said, and Taako leaned up to meet Kravitz, who was leaning down to kiss him. Angus made a sound of dismay from the doorway and they both laughed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i was about to write "it's all fluff from here on out, folks!" like  
> those were going to be the words  
> and then i remembered next chapter's addition  
> so other than that one M scene that you guys breathed into existence through me,  
> it's all fluff from here on out, folks!!!!
> 
> i still haven't drawn anything for the last chapters like i wanted to. we'll see how it goes.
> 
> i love you guys so much, we're almost done!! can you taste it!!!!!!!!!!!! i'm so hype for 300 kudos also  
> like i'll be ok with letting this big thing sit and do whatever, after im done posting, but if i could get to 300 while im still posting it, that'd be so radical...


	37. Secret Meeting

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> if you're skipping M, when you hit "holding him there with a warm kiss", just jump down to the next horizontal line

Kravitz waited until after lunch to call up the school, surprised at how readily the receptionist accepted him RSVPing for both himself and Taako. There were a lot of gay, or otherwise unmarried alumni, he guessed. He texted Taako to let him know that his Chore for the day was completed.

 

13:22  
Taako: _meanwhile im working the register and d y i n g why did i ever agree to this_  
_  
_ Taako: ppl wanting selfies with me all day like i get it cmonnn

Kravitz: _Taako Tuesday not all it’s cracked up to be? You probably shouldn’t be texting if you’re being overrun, darling._

Taako: _being ignored is part of the taako experience tm tm tm_

Taako: _oh right ur other chore is make sure blup are coming to the thing too_

Kravitz: _Oh boy, that’ll be a real hardship. See you soon._

 

He figured that Barry and Lup would be busy for a few hours yet, since he was the only one of the four of them without a day job, but sent Barry a message anyway. If Barry didn’t respond before Taako got home, one of them could bother Lup about it.

 

13:34  
Kravitz: _Barry, will you be able to make it to the Reunion? Taako and I are going, and we’d love you two to come with._

 

When Barry got back to him a while later, Kravitz had been in the middle of editing the video he and Taako had shot of his new song. Luckily, Taako had a great eye for color balance and composition, so all he really needed to do was adjust the sound levels until he was happy. He kept getting distracted by how fun it had been to work on a project with Taako, how nice it was to see the elf all excited about his music. The composition had been for Taako, of course. Almost all of them were for him, especially now.

 

16:12  
Barry: _Uhh well I guess we could go. Honestly I forgot all about it. Lup wasn’t super interested but I bet we could get her on board._

Barry: _Oh yeah wait, this is a formal event that you’re not in charge of. I know just the thing._

Kravitz: _Sounds like you’re going to commit some sartorial sin. Not sure I want you there, now._

Barry: _Too late now, bud. Lup’s gonna be real into this hehe._

Kravitz: _Call to RSVP for it tomorrow. If you forget I’ll get Taako to call and pretend to be your wife._

Barry: _Please record that. His impression is not as good as he thinks it is heh._

 

Kravitz was suddenly struck with the thought that, potentially, one day, if he was very lucky, Barry could be his _in-law_. Best friend was one thing, the thought of being family made him shudder.

 

Taako turned up a few hours later, all made up and dressed nice, since he hadn’t gotten to go back and be in his kitchen at work, stuck out front for meet-n-greet duty. It’d taken Taako a little while to actually get organized about the idea, and the elf still worried that people would show up to a Taako Tuesday event expecting him to serve Tacos. (Kravitz’s suggestion of a taco-shaped pastry had been met with first disdain, and then a thoughtful look.)

 

Kravitz watched Taako kick off his heels and ditch his purse. He waved from the couch, “Barry says he’ll get them there.”

 

“Good. The only thing weirder than showing up without a date is showing up without your identical twin.”

 

Kravitz laughed, “You could’ve pretended to be Lup all night, though, if she wasn’t there.”

 

“Please. Like I’d wanna be her when I could be _me._ She’s, what, a lame professor? I’m _Taako.”_

 

“Mm, and I suppose I couldn’t kiss you if you were pretending to be your sister.” Taako made an exaggerated gagging gesture and came to pull him up off the couch.

 

They shared a welcome home hug-and-kiss, warm and comfortable, and then Taako said, “We should figure out our super-stylish coordinated outfits. Too bad we already did the Fire Dress thing, that was a great combo. Maybe something more purple this time?” It was admirable that Taako was keeping up the conversation on his own, because Kravitz was playing with his ears, intentionally trying to distract him. Taako held out admirably, pulling away from the hug and Kravitz’s hand with obvious reluctance, and wandering back to the bedroom.

 

“We’re not throwing everything on the bed, this time.”

 

“But we had so much fun last time,” Taako giggled, and now Kravitz was the one distracted. He sat at the foot of the bed while Taako went through the entire closet, both of their halves, looking for at least one garment to base this Look™ on. It did something funny to Kravitz’s stomach to watch Taako pull out one of _his_ suits and hold it over himself. Like he was going to fit in Kravitz’s suits.

 

The height difference wasn’t huge, but Kravitz’s shoulders and chest and thighs and _everything_ were just that much wider than Taako’s. Only stretchy clothes could really be borrowed both ways, and everything else was Taako stealing his shirts. They did have one combined drawer of socks, though, at this point. They shared so much, now. If their shoe sizes matched, they’d probably share those, too. But suits? It did something weird to make Kravitz think of Taako wearing one of _his_.

 

Taako turned to look at him, holding up some tuxedo pants with his eyebrows raised. “This purple is good. I’ve got a pocket square for you, that’d match…” Kravitz nodded agreeably.

 

He stretched out on the bed a little, and then held out his arms invitingly. Taako glanced down at the pants, then back at the closet, clearly thinking. He tossed them onto a shelf and crossed the distance to Kravitz’ arms. It was cute, but he couldn’t say that Taako doing that wouldn’t have the same effect on him..

 

Kravitz squeezed him and then pulled back, kissing Taako’s temple, and then his cheekbone, and then his nose, and then Taako was laughing and catching his mouth and holding him there with a warm kiss. Kravitz thought again about his boyfriend wearing a suit, his suit, and slid one of his hands down to Taako’s ass.

 

Taako was still wearing the clothes from work, a skirt and button up top, and Kravitz was in just a t-shirt and underwear, and there was something perfectly strange about that. About the difference in clothes, about how he could just snake a hand up under Taako’s skirt and take a handful of his ass. Taako groaned against his lips, shifting back against the hand.

 

“I recall,” Kravitz said, sliding his hand under the hem of Taako’s panties, “I recall, when we first were… sexting,” Taako snickered into his collar, “You said something about… hmm… _doing stuff_ with skirts on? With panties on?”

 

The noise Taako made was very funny, like a drawn out whine, “Can we? I don’t know about the panties right now, but, babe. If I could just, like, ride you with the skirt on… mmmn, _please?_ ”

 

Kravitz’s hip bucked a little, involuntary, and he squeezed Taako again, “If that’s how you want me.”

 

“Oh, baby, I’ve wanted you like that for so long.” Taako sighed against his mouth, eyes shifting over to the bedside table. Kravitz grinned and laid back, pulling Taako down on top of him. There.

 

Okay, yes, Taako still had to crawl out of his grasp to get at the bottle of lube (they might need a new one, soon? What an absolute  _trial_ ), immediately going back over to kneel by Kravitz’s knees.

 

“You wanna help?” Taako purred, tugging the panties down to his thighs, shifting his weight from one side to the other to get them down each leg.

 

“Of course,” Kravitz said, because the noises and looks that Taako would give him would always be worth the effort. He pulled his own briefs off while he was thinking about it, before they got too busy or heated. He tugged the shirt off over his head, too, enjoying the bob of Taako’s throat as he swallowed. “C’mere.”

 

They made impatient work of prep, a tangle of their fingers sliding together toward their common goal. Taako was leaning hard into his shoulder by the time they were plausibly done, babbling cute affirmations like _I’m so ready_ and _just_ _like that_ and _oh fuck_.

 

“Not sure you’ve got any bones left for riding, my dear,” Kravitz said, nudging Taako’s hand away and grabbing a tissue to do a cursory clean-up of their fingers. He rolled on a condom and kissed the part of Taako’s head he could reach (an ear).

 

“You don’t know my life,” Taako huffed. He’d been bucking into the empty air between them for several minutes, trying without any real intent to get some kind of friction. The skirt didn’t leave much to the imagination, but it was definitely, weirdly hot to not be able to see every detail. Taako straightened up and shuffled forward, looking determined. “I’m gonna blow your fuckin’ mind, baby.”

 

“I don’t doubt it,” Kravitz murmured, lying back and sliding a hand up Taako’s thigh to rest under the skirt, his other hand going to help guide himself in. This was a kind of blind process, but they both had a pretty good understanding of where, exactly, they were aiming.

 

The slick-hot feeling of being buried inside of Taako never got old, he didn’t think he’d ever get tired of it, and Taako seemed to have similar thoughts on the matter. He let out a low hum that Kravitz, internally, categorized as a purr. Elves didn’t actually purr, probably. Taako made another satisfied noise, hands planted on Kravitz’s chest, as he wiggled his hips, seated fully on his dick.

 

“Mmn, yep, this was a great idea, I’m a genius,” Taako mumbled, lifting up enough to start a rolling pace going, shallow thrusts that were probably all Taako actually had the energy to maintain. They hit deep, though, and Kravitz couldn’t complain about the friction or the view. Taako’s face never stopped being expressive, like this, but Kravitz loved watching his face. Loved the way his hair was slowly disheveling and falling over his shoulder. Kravitz still had a hand under the skirt, which was just short of flipping up with each downstroke, Taako’s cock still holding it up obscenely.

 

It was only a few minutes before Taako started to flag, though, and Kravitz said, “Want me to sit up? I could help.” Taako frowned and bit his lip, like maybe that’d be admitting defeat, but nodded. Kravitz carefully propped himself up, and placed Taako’s arms around his neck.

 

“Hey there,” Taako grinned, kissing him, messy and lazy. Kravitz took hold of Taako’s hips and helped, lifting him enough to get a good thrust in on the way down, and Taako moaned, getting the picture. They cooperated to get a nice, faster, but looser rhythm going, and again the sensation of Kravitz being totally nude, up against a deceptively clothed elf, was stoking the fire in his belly.

 

“Love you,” Kravitz breathed, and Taako shifted just enough to suck on one of Kravitz’s ears, grazing his teeth over the tip, and it hadn’t ever been enough to get him off on its own, but that, combined with the heat and weight of Taako on him, around him, had Kravitz’s hips stuttering as his orgasm crashed around him. Taako made a very pleased noise, grinding down into those erratic thrusts.

 

He sighed as Kravitz caught his breath, leaning into him still, “Mmkay, help me out of this stuff, Taako wants to come.”

 

Kravitz helped pick Taako up enough to slide out, lying him down on his back and carefully shimmying the skirt down his legs. Kravitz laid down between Taako’s legs, “You can do the shirt, I’ll do this.”

 

“Uh-huh,” Taako said agreeably, fingers fumbling uselessly against the buttons of his blouse as Kravitz sucked on the head of Taako’s dick, his fingers sliding back into the elf to find his prostate. If Taako wanted to come, Kravitz knew pretty well how to make that happen. Taako didn’t manage to get his shirt all the way off before he was spilling into Kravitz’s throat.

 

He made grabby hands at Kravitz, who was feeling pretty satisfied with himself for hijacking the fashion conversation. Kravitz crawled up the bed and let Taako wrap his arms and legs around him. Especially after being fucked, Taako always wanted to wrap Kravitz up with his body, just. Clinging. Kravitz loved it, of course, though it did make it difficult to get back out of bed, or off of the couch, or out of the bathtub.

 

In this case, they’d still need to eat something before going to bed for good, and probably did need to pick out clothes for this thing, but. He inhaled the bakery smells that still clung to Taako’s half-undone blouse. They could stay like this for just a bit.

 

 

* * *

 

 

The next day at the grocery store, Kravitz ran into an old friend in the bread aisle. They greeted each other and mutually agreed to retreat to a less rowdy aisle of the store.

 

Kravitz secured the bagels Taako liked and smiled at her from the safety of the health-supplements aisle. Lucretia pulled up her cart behind his.

 

“It’s been so long, Kravitz. I didn’t get a chance to say hello at the concert, but it was lovely.”

 

“Oh, I’m sorry I missed you there.” He’d missed almost everyone, so the reunion itself was still going to the be the first time in a while that he’d see a lot of folks. “It’s going to get hectic, soon. I’m excited though.”

 

She smiled, “I’m excited for you all, too. Hopefully I’ll be able to make it to another show. It might get difficult to get tickets, though, after that first one.”

 

“One can only hope,” he said dryly, and they both chuckled.

 

“I saw you and Taako are together?” She ventured, “He seems good, in the photos you posted.”

 

“He’s going to open a second bakery soon,” Kravitz smiled. “I’m so proud.” Lucretia looked really pleased to hear that Taako was doing well, which made him even more curious. What had happened between the two of them to make Taako get all pouty and negative when he heard Lucretia’s name? He hadn’t found a good time to ask the elf about it, because Lucy’s name didn’t come up organically a lot in conversations between the two of them. But maybe she would tell him. “It’s not really my place to ask, but I wondered… why don’t you and Taako talk more? You used to be such good friends.”

 

Lucretia looked instantly sadder, and Kravitz wanted to reach out and comfort her. She had been, and still was, a close friend of his, too. Time didn’t really change a thing like that.

 

“He has every reason to be upset with me, I think. Has he told you about Sazed, yet?”

 

Kravitz nodded. Every now and then they’d have to pause some activity, be it mundane or in the bedroom, and talk Taako through something old and broken. Sazed was long gone from Taako’s life, but had left a few marks that went deep.

 

“I was the one who introduced them. I didn’t realize what a piece of scum Sazed was, obviously, but. I don’t know. After that ended, I tried to help him rebound, set him up on a date with Brian.” Kravitz didn’t know the details of that one, because it hadn’t messed Taako up as bad, but obviously it hadn’t gone well. “And then Brad?”

 

This made Kravitz stand up straighter, _“Brad?_ Like, the orc Brad?” Obviously, he didn’t want his boyfriend to go be with Brad _now_ but he had a hard time imagining Brad being anything other than utterly kind to Taako.

 

“I don’t know the details, but suffice it to say, it didn’t work out. At any rate.” They scooted their carts a little closer to the shelves to let somebody pass them. “I entirely understand why Taako got sick of looking at me. I thought I knew the kind of men he was interested in, and of course we all knew that really he was interested in you, Kravitz, but. I’m sure when he sees me, he thinks of that abuse.”

 

“But it wasn’t your fault,” Kravitz started, and then realized that maybe that was the wrong way to approach this. Blame wasn’t the important thing, years on. “I suppose he knows how to hold a grudge.”

 

Lucretia nodded. “Don’t worry about it too much, Kravitz. I feel better knowing that you have each other, now. I guess I never considered trying to get you together before because… it seemed too obvious?”

 

He laughed, “We’d independently thought the same thing. We’ll see you at the reunion?”

 

“I’ll be there. It was good seeing you.”

 

Kravitz walked around her cart to give her a quick squeeze. “Good to see you too, Lucy.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> if you skipped: you didn't miss anything, lol. krav said "i love you" one time, but that's just what he says sometimes.
> 
> this chapter was half as long before i added that scene for y'all  
> also one of you specifically asked for this particular thing (maybe not the clothes part) but lol, you know who you are. i couldn't _not_ do that when you mentioned it............
> 
> reunion part one is next time! it's a two-part event! and then the end. :0 woah!  
> ps remember that you can totally send me a message about this stuff anywhere, and i'll probably give you some kind of info or snippet of something... i'm easily convinced to Write More  
> there will probably be a follow-up of some kind, i just need a Plot to go with all the sap i'm gonna wanna do, haha
> 
> i love you <3 have a good day <3<3


	38. Strange Reunions

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (on mobile you might have to scroll sideways to see the rest of the pics, 2/3 are horizontal)

Taako let Kravitz drive as they went to go get Barry and Lup. There was definitely going to be drinks at this reunion shindig and if only one of the four of them had to be sober, that’d be the best timeline.

 

But when his sister and brother-in-law walked out their front door he involuntarily reached out to swat at Kravitz’s shoulder, “No, fuck, we can’t be seen with them.” Kravitz started laughing immediately, and Taako scowled. “At least pretend to pull away? Please? I love you, do this for me, dude.”

 

Probably only because Kravitz loved him too, the car rolled forward just enough to have Lup dashing toward them, and then Kravitz stopped and locked the doors. “How long do you want to keep this up, Taako? We’re short on time.” He was still laughing, though.

 

Taako stuck his tongue out at Lup from behind the window, and then rolled it down enough to say, “Go change, please, gods, you people are awful.”

 

“It’s this or I’m gonna just go back inside,” Lup said, hand on the backseat’s locked door. Barry was at the car, too, now.

 

“Ugh, let them in, I guess,” Taako grumped. Here he was, dressed not to the nines but the  _ tens _ and his sister was wearing a denim dress. It was mildly cute, he’d admit under duress, but like. It would be cuter if Barry wasn’t wearing a denim jacket with his denim pants. The shirt underneath the jacket was mercifully not blue or denim or a white bulk-bag t-shirt. It was collared and black.

 

Taako eyed his sister’s accessories and decided that she had tried a little. Her black leather crop-top jacket and dark makeup was a nice match to Barry’s black shirt and shoes. Fine. Whatever.

 

“I’m  _ so _ glad you guys didn’t show up dressed like that to the concert,” Kravitz sighed, catching his breath from laughing. Unfortunately, a bunch of the fucks from school would think it was funny too, which only encouraged them. Taako didn’t want to stand next to them at this thing. He and Krav were dressed fucking  _ nice. _

 

He, Taako, he was in high-waisted purple tuxedo pants. The the skinny-legged kind fitted for women, of course, but like. Gendered fashion wasn’t a thing,  _ obviously. _ He’d picked heels that were danceable, though he didn’t actually plan to dance, and his eyeliner was winged sharp enough to kill a fool.

 

Kravitz, of course, looked a- _ mazing _ . They’d had to go shopping to find a suit jacket that matched Taako’s purple, because he didn’t trust himself to transmute a nice jacket evenly or reliably, but it brought out all of those pretty blue undertones in Kravitz’s skin. Taako was absolutely going to steal it later, even though the shoulders were way too wide. That could be a Look, too.  _ Fashion. _ Krav wouldn’t have left the house for an event like this looking anything other than fresh as hell, so he hadn’t really needed Taako’s help, but. Well, getting everyone’s hair and makeup done and then redone after messing it up was part of why they were a little behind on time. 

 

The drive over to the old high school, and the venue that was the cafeteria (classy), was luckily not far. Parking was a little bad. They ended up parking around back by the portables, because it’d be a shorter walk than the back of the parking lot.

 

Taako reluctantly, but internally, could respect Lup and Barry’s bullshit denim ensembles. He just wished they weren’t walking right next to them in rich purple and black. He and Kravitz let the other two walk ahead of them, just to put some distance between their entrances.

 

“You ready to see a bunch of fucks who got old?” Taako grinned.

 

“We got old, too,” Kravitz snorted, finding Taako’s hand and taking it.

 

“Nah, I’ll never get old,” Taako decided. At least his elven blood was good for something besides ears and spotty magic. He’d definitely get old, but maybe it wouldn’t be noticeable for a while. Raven was at least fifty (he wasn’t about to ask his maybe-future-mother-in-law how old she was), and she looked killer still. Kravitz might not. He’d definitely be the one who looked like arm candy later, if Krav looked old when he was still cute. Taako shook his head to clear that thought.

 

The music was, predictably, all throwback stuff from a decade back. Some of it was older, the kind of music they’d play in gym class when they’d walk laps around the gym. The thing had only started a half hour back and people were already dancing some, so Taako couldn’t turn up his nose _too_ hard at a nostalgia playlist.

 

 

“Magnus, Julia!” Kravitz called at his side, and Taako turned to see another goddamn fashion disaster. Why had they even bothered dressing up, when the Bluejeans party was wearing only blue jeans, and the Burnsides delegation was in matching plaid flannel tops. Julia’s was fitted, which meant that they’d also absolutely done this on purpose.

 

“I hate you people,” Taako announced to the room at large. Magnus swept him up in a hug, and Taako tried to fight out of it, “No, f-fuck off, dude,  _ my hair.” _

 

“Chill out, Taako,” Magnus laughed, and swung him around a little. Taako wished he could reach Magnus’s side to tickle his way free of this situation. Julia and Magnus were both laughing at them.

 

“I’m going to fetch us some drinks,” Kravitz said, and wove his way away. Magnus put Taako down.

 

Julia held up a hand to whisper at them, and Taako perked an ear her way unnecessarily, “Did you guys see Maarvey?  _ Don’t-- _ don’t both look at once, dumbasses!”

 

“Oh my gods,” Taako choked. The leader of the Hammerheads, the Starblaster “Club”’s rival bullshit-hangout group, no longer owned a huge pompadour. He now owned a very bad combover.

 

“Everything that lead up to this moment,” Magnus said solemnly, “It as all worth it.”

 

Taako tried not to be too conspicuous with his laughing, but Burnsides One and Burnsides Two were not shy about just losing it over Magnus’s serious joke delivery. Kravitz returned with a glass of wine for Taako and raised an eyebrow, “Already missing jokes?”

 

“Maarvey’s fuckin’ bald, it’s incredible,” Taako snickered, sipping at the wine. It was white, which was his general preference, but this one was not his favorite. Like a Riesling or something, way sweet. No way would Kravitz trade him whatever his red was, though.

 

“Not going to be building new bridges with the Hammerheads, then?” There was suddenly a voice from below Taako’s line of sight, and he looked down to see Davenport. Right. Merle didn’t have a reason to be here, but Dav still worked at the school. Hell, he’d mentioned this thing to them a month ago. Right.

 

“Not a chance,” Taako declared.

 

Magnus and Julia turned to chat with Carey while Taako and Kravitz gave Davenport their attention.

 

“You two are still doing alright, I take it.” Davenport didn’t have a drink. Maybe he was technically working at this thing. Taako thought he deserved a drink, though, and would’ve offered him his wine if he didn’t already know Davenport’s drink preferences. They did not include shitty dessert wine.

 

“The matching outfits would be strange, otherwise,” Kravitz mused, wrapping an arm around Taako’s shoulders. Taako leaned into him fondly.

 

“I had my doubts,” Davenport admitted. “Though I’m not sure why. So many of the lovebirds from ten years ago are still together now, somehow.” He shook his head, “Anyway, if you’re still together three months in, I’m sure you’ll make this work. You already know about Taako being a big pain in the ass.”

 

Taako stuck his tongue out at his maybe-stepdad at the same time that Magnus interjected from the sidelines, “That’s what he said!” Taako stuck his tongue out at Mags, too.

 

 

Kravitz thanked everyone and made enough pleasantries to excuse themselves from that conversation, and Taako was down for that. Spread their energies out and all. But then Kravitz betrayed him by leading Taako over toward Lucretia. There was no good way to protest.

 

“Lucy! What’s got you over here in the corner?” Kravitz said, all cheerful. Taako schooled his face.

 

“Ah, well, I am an organizer for the event. They called and asked if I wanted to be a part of it, since I was valedictorian before. I’m just trying to keep an eye on things, I suppose.”

 

Taako didn’t know what he was supposed to say here. “Nice party, Luce. Did you do the playlist?”

 

The look on Lucretia’s face made him uncomfortable. It was like she really was delighted for him to talk to her. This sucked. He knocked back the second half of his glass of oversweet wine, not caring how obvious that gesture was. Whatever, both of these nerds knew how to read him like a book anyway.

 

“No,” Lucretia carefully looked upward, rather than right at Taako.  _ Cool. _ “I’m sure Coach Taylor had something to do with that. The gym class music, especially.”

 

“Really takes ya back.” Taako drawled. What had Kravitz wanted out of this?

 

Lucretia spoke up again and Taako could suddenly guess why he’d been dragged over here, “Taako, I am  _ so _ sorry. You can still be upset with me, but I assure you, I never would have suggested someone like him if I’d known. You didn’t deserve to suffer through even one date like that because of me.”

 

Taako made himself look at her, at how the strong and loyal girl he’d known had grown up into someone dependable and kind. She wasn’t maybe the best judge of character, but… yeah, he’d known it was dumb to blame her for his heartbreaks. It might have been her bad advice, but it had been his choice to go on those dates. He wasn’t any better at reading a potential love interest than she was. No matter how Sazed had bothered him, she hadn’t been party to that. Not intentionally.

 

So he shook his head at her and sighed, “You’re right. I didn’t deserve that, nobody does. But.” He looked around to see if anybody was around to hear him. Unfortunately, yes, several people besides Kravitz were loitering within earshot. Whatever. “But you didn’t deserve my being an asshole for years over it. You weren’t the one who needed a restraining order filed against him. Sorry for holding that against you for so long, Luce.”

 

He heard the telltale sound of at least two spit-takes in the periphery as he carefully stepped closer to give her a loose hug. She didn’t immediately wrap her skinny arms back around him, but when she did, it was pretty loose on her end, too.

 

It’d take a while for him to stop looking at her and thinking  _ ugh _ , but. He felt a little lighter as they walked away. Kravitz had a hand into one of his back pockets and gave Taako’s butt a squeeze. Taako chose to take that as some kind of reward for good behavior.

 

They got another drink, something better this time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> part one of the reunion!!!!
> 
> part two sometime tomorrow! i'm going to draw pics for it and final chapter, but considering i haven't started them yet, we might actually go back to one chapter a day to finish up.
> 
> thanks again to anna for helping me pick out bits to draw <3
> 
> and thanks to YOU for being here and reading this right now!!!!!!!!!! <3 <3 <3  
> (ALSO FUCK YEAH 300 KUDOS PASSED thank you!!!!!!! love them milestones!!)


	39. The Love We're In

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (again 2/3 are horizontal enough you might need to scroll sideways on mobile!)

At the drinks table, Kravitz was pulled away from Taako and into a hug. He realized who it was almost immediately: Sloane. They were still of a height, though with her heels on she was a little taller than him. He grinned and hugged his friend (technically a cousin, their mothers were related). Taako had their glasses at his side when that was done with, and Sloane looked them over and gave an exaggerated shrug.

 

“You’re  _ really _ bad at following up with me, Krav. Glad things worked out, though.”

 

He winced, “I’m going to get better about keeping up.” It was funny, in a way, that all of their friends kept taking in the sight of him and Taako in coordinated outfits and thinking… something like  _ ‘yes they will be together forever now.’  _ It spoke volumes to what they’d figured out already: everyone else had known that they liked each other, mutually, and never said a thing about it in school. Teens really were stupid.

 

Hurley wandered up, having lost track of her girlfriend, and said hello before the two of them went off.

 

They endured what felt like a parade of old friends that had fallen to the wayside. Some friends, like Magnus and Lucretia, Kravitz knew that they’d want to actually keep in touch with and see on a regular basis. He had nothing against the girls, but catching up with Carey and Killian was more of an exercise in neither party really caring too much about the other’s stuff.

 

Graham (formerly Percy) and Jess and Sabine and Jerry  _ and _ Jerree, and any number of other people Kravitz literally hadn’t thought about in ten years suddenly wanted to chat with him. Taako was even more popular, though, due to the bakery and the internet. People he didn’t even remember, spouses of people they’d never had classes with, wanted to talk to Taako.

 

Kravitz laughed as he got pulled into selfies, sure that whoever had wanted a photo with Taako didn’t want a photo with  _ him.  _ Eventually, Taako seemed to get bored of soaking up attention. Kravitz saved him by making some apologies and pulling Taako away, toward the makeshift dance floor.

 

“I don’t know why I thought it’d be fun to be super popular at this thing,” Taako complained, and Kravitz rolled his eyes and pulled Taako’s hand up to spin him. This seemed to lift his spirits instantly. Everyone liked getting to twirl. “Man, I shoulda done a skirt after all. Can we dance again later just so I can do a skirt?”

 

 

Kravitz laughed, “We can dance anytime.” They’d set up his old stereo last week, still unpacking odds and ends from Kravitz’s apartment, and not had a reason to use it.

 

“Dad  _ did _ used to say we should dance every day,” Taako said, looking a little annoyed at himself, like he didn’t like referencing something Merle had said in a positive way.

 

“Speaking of,” Kravitz inclined his head toward Barry and Lup, who he’d been watching over Taako’s shoulder. Taako turned and let out an put-upon sigh. What they were doing could maybe be called  _ tearing up the dance floor, _ but that did not mean that they were doing it in a good way. They looked like they were having fun, dancing very badly. He caught a twitch at the corner of Taako’s mouth.

 

The song, which had been one more appropriate for playing dodgeball to than dancing, switched over to something a little more chill and slow. Kravitz didn’t even need to ask to know Taako wanted to be slow-danced, grinning when the elf lit up and adjusted arm positions to match. It was easier to focus on each other like this, though that was hardly the point of being at this thing.

 

A few other couples made their way onto the floor, but luckily none of those people gave them any mind. Taako leaned into him, comfortably, in a way that hadn’t stopped feeling  _ right _ since they’d gotten together. Having the elf’s head anywhere from Kravitz’s shoulder to his chest was just… it was where Taako belonged. In his arms.

 

 

The lights dimmed.

 

Against the wall, a projector screen descended on its own. The cafeteria had definitely had ones that needed to be manually pulled down, a decade ago. Kravitz reluctantly pulled away enough to look at the thing, but kept an arm wrapped around Taako’s shoulders. Taako’s hand stayed around his waist.

 

Lucretia’s voice rang out as the song faded, “Thank you all for being here. It’s been a long time! I know some of you travelled from out of town, and we’re so glad that you made it. I’m going to try and keep this brief, since I know you’ve all had your fill of my speeches,” she paused to let everyone laugh. There was a loud  _ WOO!  _ from the far side of the room, and Kravitz suspected Carey. “I have some old photos, and then we’ll have some awards to give out. Stick around for the raffle, if you’re interested! All proceeds are going toward renovating the old portables! Gods know they need it.”

 

Kravitz let Taako lead him back toward the drinks table, and thought that they should probably cut themselves off with this third drink. He still got himself a new glass of inoffensive but uninspired table red. Taako turned to mutter into his ear, “What kind of awards do you think we’re gonna get? Biggest nerd and handsomest chef?”

 

“Lucy wouldn’t do that to me.” Kravitz said, mock-offended, as the slideshow started up.

 

It was cute.

 

A lot of photos were just cribbed from their senior yearbook, but some of them were from various field trips and clubs. Their school wasn’t enormous, but there were still more than a hundred people in their graduating class. He recognized more faces in the slideshow than he did in the room, the ones who hadn’t been his friends had changed too much to be very familiar.

 

The nice thing, though, was Lucretia’s obvious bias in putting this group of photos together. There were more photos of the Starblaster crew than any other club, and more candid shots of people he did know than people he didn’t. There was a particularly cute one of the twins wearing each other’s clothes that made Kravitz smile. They hadn’t changed too-too much, physically, but their hair had. Taako’s hair care routine was mildly improved now, and Lup’s hair wasn’t as poorly dyed now as it had been then.

 

Then Taako laughed out loud at a picture of Kravitz and Avi in band uniforms, and Kravitz had to resist the urge to elbow him.

 

This slideshow went a little overlong, but when the lights came back up and the music turned down again, Lucretia was standing by the screen with her hand full of paper certificates.

 

“Okay, I’ve made sure we only have these for people who are actually here today, so  _ please  _ do come get yours when I call you. We all know what you look like, here, you can’t hide.” Again, a pause for chuckles. “First and foremost, we have a classic, Best Dressed!” Kravitz hid a laugh at how quickly Taako’s ears perked up.

 

“Barry Bluejeans, come on up,” and now it wasn’t chuckles so much as delighted cheering. Lucretia was a genius, and the crowd seemed excited about her silly awards, now.

 

“Best Ponytail,” Lucretia announced, and it was awarded to Brad. There were several more in between, a mix of joke-awards and real ones, just to keep everyone on their toes. “Best Youtuber, a category that would not have existed ten years ago, because Fantasy Youtube was a thing, but  _ Youtubers _ certainly weren’t--” Somebody heckled a  _ Get on with it!  _ and Lucretia’s look got stern, staring down whoever it had been before continuing, “You all know him, you might love him, it’s our best and hippest local internet celebrity, Taako Highchurch!”

 

Taako looked mildly annoyed at first, and then pleased as he left Kravitz’s side to go accept his award. He stole the microphone from Lucretia in a brief scuffle, affecting a very sarcastic tone, “Hey, yeah, sure,  _ youtube! _ Remember to like and subscribe!”

 

 

Lucy managed to wrest the mic back from him and push him back toward the crowd. Taako looked very pleased with himself when he rejoined Kravitz, and they sat through a number of other awards.

 

It was clear, by the height of her stack of papers, that Lucretia had come up with some kind of superlative award for most people. Some of them, since they were handwritten, had probably been come up with on the spot, this evening. Kravitz inspected Taako’s certificate and was impressed with the handwritten part’s calligraphic look. Lucretia had always been the best at things like that.

 

He accepted that maybe he hadn’t been good enough (or even bad enough) at anything lately to be singled out, but of course Lucy had something for him right at the end. “And last but definitely not least, I have a special award for an up-and-coming Rising Star among us:  _ Kravitz Macallister! _ ”

 

Kravitz went to take the piece of paper, not significantly different-looking than Taako’s, and return to his side. He was grateful, again, that it would be near impossible for anyone to notice the way his face was flushed.

 

The look Taako was giving him when he got back was something like a scowl. “Something wrong?” He asked, taking back the glass Taako had been holding for him.

 

“Nooothing,” Taako hedged. The crowd broke up again, now that Lucretia was done making them look at photos and come get silly certificates.

 

“It’s okay if it’s something dumb?” Kravitz offered, and wondered if Taako had a hair tie in his purse that they could roll up their papers with. This thing was probably nearly over, so maybe he didn’t need to bother. He bumped gently into Taako’s side.

 

“Youtuber is such a  _ dumb award,”  _ Taako groaned, “Rising Star? That’s so fucking cool, ugh.” Kravitz stifled a laugh as Taako’s frown deepened.

 

“What should I have gotten, if you wanted my award?”

 

“Mmph,” Taako ditched his empty wineglass on a table, “Maybe  _ Gives Best Head _ .”

 

Kravitz laughed helplessly, fumbling a hand forward to try and cover Taako’s mouth, “Lucy wouldn’t give me that award, love, holy shit…”

 

“You asked what you should have gotten! That’s what  _ I’d _ give,” Taako decided, batting away his hand.

 

They returned to the dance floor for some lazy dancing, now that they were three drinks in and less concerned with being impressive. Barry and Lup seemed to have taken a break. Kravitz imagined Barry had probably gotten ready to sit Lup down someplace, since Barry was sober and she was Not.

 

Barry did come find them after another few songs, “Ready to go, boys? Lup’s about to fight Julia about not wanting to do shots with her, and I’m afraid she’ll just find someone else to do it with… we should get outta here.”

 

Kravitz turned to survey the room. Yes. He’d met everyone he cared about at all, and some he could take or leave. The ones that mattered wouldn’t mind them ducking out.

 

“Mmhm, we’re ready to go.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm dying and crying and i love you guys so much...  
> i went to bed at 2am last night so i could finish these drawings (don't worry i started after midnight lol)  
> and then i woke up at 6am and read the lovely kind comments you guys left while i was sleeping
> 
> i can't even express... i've been in a state of mild shock at how big this response has been at the end, honestly!! like that happy soaring feeling all last night and today so far...! gosh dang
> 
> expect the last chapter either tonight or tomorrow. (also expect hhhh a fucking NOVEL length author note next time)  
> again please, especially after the last one, send me messages or comments on things you'd like to explore in a follow-up. it HOPEFULLY won't go as long as this one did, but i do think i'll want to do one!! just need the spark of a plot haha
> 
> i love you, have a great day!!!!!


	40. Beautiful Head

They waved to Barry and Lup after getting dropped off at home, Taako figured they’d drive over and get the car back in the morning. Nice benefit of still having two cars.

 

“That was a lot,” Kravitz said, but the way he visibly relaxed upon walking through the door made Taako smile. He felt much the same. His mood had gotten so much better, lately. Sometimes, he could just be at home and soak up that feeling of contentment, of easy companionship.

 

“It was fun, but honestly, I’m going to steal your award. Two for me seems right.”

 

“Tough, but fair,” Kravitz agreed.

 

Taako took off his shoes and wiggled his toes. They hadn’t been open toe, but he still had on a pretty purple polish that went with the rest of his outfit, just in case. “It really drove home just how dumb high school was. I mean, glad we have our friends and all,” Taako turned to flash Kravitz a grin, “But, like. I’m pretty sure you’re the best thing that happened to me, back then.”

 

“You’re the best thing that’s happened to me, full stop.” Kravitz straightened their discarded shoes. He’d tried to organize them, but so far the sheer number of shoes they owned was untameable. The next step would have to be asking Magnus to make them some bespoke shoe caddy monster. Floor to ceiling.

 

 

Taako gave Kravitz a look to wordlessly communicate  _ That’s Gay  _ and Krav laughed so it must have worked. He started thinking about a nice shower and getting out of his clothes, but paused.

 

“Hey, before we get all comfortable again, wanna do some videos?”

 

“Hm. Yours or mine?” Kravitz had had a hand on his tie to loosen it, but aborted the motion.

 

“Don’t see why we couldn’t do a little of both,” Taako knew Kravitz could play music just fine, even after three glasses of garbage wine. He also knew he, Taako, he was totally capable of cooking up something after the same. “‘Sides, we’re all dressed up pretty for it.”   
  
“I’m telling you, a casual friday video every now and then would be endearing…”

 

“Mmhm, like the kid videos and sappy ones where I’m talking to you off camera aren’t endearing enough. Please. Gotta keep up appearances, at least.” Taako’s hit counts didn’t lie, though. Somehow, being a softer dude who still told dumb jokes was working for him. Not that he really needed the side revenue of the channel, but he was setting it aside for something fun. A vacation, or a big party, maybe.

 

He was having thoughts lately, to the effect of, like… just expecting this to work. Maybe not always perfectly, maybe not always easy, but. Kravitz loved him. He couldn’t imagine wanting that to ever change.

 

Three months into a relationship, no matter how charmed his life was, was  _ absolutely _ too soon for the vague big party and big cake he’d thought about.

 

They’d been through not one, but  _ two  _ shitty love confessions. Taako was  _ not _ going to be the asshole who rushed into a proposal, no fuckin’ way.

 

But. It was something he’d put a super gay thought or two into.

 

“Alright, I’m game. Did you have anything in mind already?” Having Kravitz at home a lot of the time meant that the groceries were almost always well-stocked, now, so there were options. Kravitz had plenty of time to go get whatever they needed, and it got him out of the house when he needed to walk around. Taako was happier knowing that there was another two concert gigs in the next week, though.

 

“First of all, I think you should do a cameo in mine,” Taako said, studying Kravitz’s face from across the kitchen island. His cute boyfriend’s cheeks darkened.

 

“Are you sure? Angus is one thing, for a guest… he’s a cute kid. It’s not like I’ve got brand appeal, love.”

 

“Non- _ sense! _ ” Taako waved a hand, “You’re cute, and I’m an idiot who reads the comments, and everyone wants to know who my offscreen boyfriend is. They had a poll trying to guess if you were older or younger than me.”

 

“Not that they’d be able to tell when they saw me,” Kravitz said, looking thoughtful.

 

“C’mon, babyyy… I’ll make it worth your while. You come be cute in my video, maybe try and play my jingle or whatever on your keyboard,” Taako broke into a bigger smile when Kravitz tried to interrupt to  _ probably  _ tell him that his jingle was impossible to play on a keyboard, “And, hmm, I’ll let you lick all the spoons.”

 

“Deal,” Kravitz said, immediately, like Taako didn’t let him lick non-raw-egg spoons all the time.

 

Setting up the lights right took longer than usual, especially because Taako wanted to tweak the setup to make Kravitz look really good. This was the part he usually did sober, when Lup was over, so it was a little tricky after a few glasses, but he managed. Kravitz stood in frame patiently while he adjusted the camera settings.

 

“I think we’re just gonna make a really cute cake,” Taako decided, once he had a shot he liked. “Go drag the keyboard over here, I don’t want you off-screen for even a second, babe.”

 

“You’re overestimating how much your followers would want to see  _ me.  _ They’d be happy just seeing you all dressed up pretty,” Taako’s ears warmed up, pavlovian, with the compliment. He shook his head and started pulling out the cute ingredient bowls.

 

 

* * *

 

 

They’d showered, afterward, squeezed in together in the tiny shower stall (the one at Kravitz’s old apartment had been bigger, but Taako liked this arrangement just fine). Maybe it would’ve been smarter to eat dinner, at that point, since they’d been out all evening and only snacked at the reunion, but Taako took a few more photos of their cake and cut into it.

 

It was an out-of-season heart shape, all purples and pinks, and he’d taught Kravitz on-camera how to pipe flowers. It wasn’t perfect. The lacy design on one side was more precise than the other, the food coloring had been semi-intentionally unevenly mixed. It was definitely not Taako’s prettiest cake.

 

He loved it so much.

 

Taako brought out two huge slices on paper plates, pulling up a stool from the kitchen so that they could both sit by the computer, and hit  _ play  _ on the raw footage.

 

 

Maybe it was a little vain, to get so much joy out of watching his own videos, to enjoy the process of editing something that was almost entirely his own face and hands and voice, but Taako didn’t care about that normally. He certainly wasn’t going to feel bad about it  _ now.  _ This one had Kravitz in it.

 

Kravitz was at his side, making cute noises around bites of cake. They were both starving, he knew, and as he played back the footage, he caught Kravitz sneaking a bite of this or that in the background. He laughed, delighted, and forged onward.

 

He got to look at Kravitz’s face on the monitor, now, as well as look at the real thing at his side, and it was so fucking funny and sweet. Kravitz only had a couple of newer videos up on his fantasy facebook, since Taako had help him record, and those were the only ones that had his face in them. Those, he was relatively focused, playing his music with skill and style. This video, however, had him looking curious and dorky and… “I love you,” Taako sighed.

 

“I love you, too,” Kravitz said automatically, through a mouthful of cake. Taako got what he meant.

 

“I can post this, right? I know I made you do it, but like. I need to post this, babe.”

 

Kravitz, bless him, shrugged. “You did let me lick the spoons, so I think I’m legally obligated to let you post it.”

 

Taako scrubbed through the video to the end, when the cake had been done and Taako had hopped out of the way to change the camera focus.

 

Kravitz sat down at his keyboard, on the screen, and began to play. It wasn’t exactly the jingle, because a seven second song was anticlimactic to watch someone play live, but Kravitz had improvised a nice little song out of it. If Taako had  _ credits  _ on these videos, it would absolutely be the ending credits song.

 

He glanced up to gauge Kravitz’s reaction to his own work, and was happy to see him smiling. There was cake at the corner of his mouth, and both of them still had wet hair, but Taako couldn’t imagine a more perfect sight.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im not crying YOU'RE CRYING!!!!!!!
> 
> so,  
> i hope nobody's mad i didn't put a proposal in, but guys, it  
> it's only been three months,  
> hahaha
> 
> GENUINELY THOUGH, thank you so much for your support. for reading this much, for caring. i appreciate it so much. i love these boys and i loved writing this, and i loved every comment that i got, and i love knowing that people enjoyed it.
> 
> feel free to send me a message for follow-up prompts or ideas, or a comment, or anything  
> i've now got, hmm, three things in progress! nothing is ready to post yet, but don't worry. if you liked this, i'll have at least one more Actually Fun story, in addition to whatever else happens. keep an eye out.  
> (don't expect anything in the next week, though, because Spring Break... it is killer!! for me, because i work in tourism haha)
> 
> have a great rest of your day. no matter when you read this. i love you. thank you.

**Author's Note:**

> talk to me on [tumblr](http://pepgold.tumblr.com/)


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